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Iran-Russia rivalry for Syrian economic sway may grow

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IRAN/SYRIA

Iran has been looking to build up its business ties on the ground in Syria, and views access to trade infrastructure as a key component in its plans for an integrated trade and…

Added US sanctions on Syria may prove self-defeating

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SYRIA/US

This comes as the US Congress is finalising a bill, the Caesar Act, that would substantially increase the sanctions pressure on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s government. As…

Prospects for Iraq in 2018

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PROSPECTS 2018

Prospects for Iraq in 2018.

Syria will struggle to address acute energy shortages

Location:

SYRIA

This is part of a wider energy crisis that is also evident in the long queues outside petrol stations and in the difficulty that bakeries face in securing fuel, on top of the…

Syria's ruler will seek to ride out economic protests

Location:

SYRIA

The demonstrations were triggered by Assad’s mid-August announcement of big fuel price increases, only partly mitigated by rises in salaries and pensions. However, they have been…

Damascus can manage fragmented military forces

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SYRIA

President Bashar al-Assad's two principal foreign backers, Russia and Iran, support and to some extent direct sizeable forces in Syria on which Assad relies. That contributes to a…

Russia will show pragmatism in seeking Syria solution

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RUSSIA/SYRIA

Government forces have struggled to make headway in their offensive against the final rebel stronghold in the north-west. That campaign enjoys significant Russian support…

A new US-Iran war will play out in Iraq and beyond

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IRAN/IRAQ/US

The operation, authorised by US President Donald Trump, killed Qassem Soleimani, longstanding chief of the Quds Force -- the external action wing of the Islamic Revolution Guard…