All-Against-All In The Middle East: The International Wars Within Syria

A brief yet very interesting analysis of the conflicts fueled by the Syrian War. In this piece for The Atlantic, Krishnadev Calamur argues that "Syria's War encompasses at least three other international conflicts."

Recent events involving Turkey, the US, Israel, Iran, and Russia have the potential to escalate into something more dangerous. Together, Calamur claims, they are also proof that Syria cannot hope for stability soon.

Today's news that Syrian government forces will support Syrian Kurds in the fight against Turkey may create yet another conflict.

The US has worked closely with Syrian Kurds in the fight against ISIS but opposes Bashar al-Assad. A collaboration between Syrian government forces and the Kurdish YPG will put the US in an awkward position. More so after the US had to confront its NATO ally, Turkey, for this relationship, as Ankara regards the YPG a 'terrorist organization.'

There are many actors involved in the Syrian War, and all of them have different—often opposing—interests, starting with who should run the country if a peace agreement were reached. So far all of them have gone further than making threats against each other, but all sides are working themselves into positions that will be increasingly difficult to back down from.