Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
1 to 10 of about 15
Decades of corruption have paradoxically led to the Syrian Army's resilience in the face of a multifront war and tens of thousands of defections.
Marginalized for decades under former presidents Habib Bourguiba and Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali, the Tunisian military has begun to see its fortunes reverse after the 2011 revolution.
Ukraine is trying, once again, to become a functioning democracy. Yet the war in Donbas, the slow pace of reforms, and the economic crisis are all impeding democratic consolidation.
The Lebanese Armed Forces, one of the few state institutions that is regarded by most citizens as trustworthy and legitimate, continues to reflect the communal and political cleavages of broader Lebanese society.
The self-proclaimed Islamic State’s takeover of Mosul in the summer of 2014 was a dark moment for Iraq’s military whose four well-armed divisions rapidly disintegrated.
The issue of unifying Kurdish military forces has been on the Kurdish region’s public agenda since 1991. Seventeen years later, the various peshmerga forces remain divided along partisan lines.
The Syrian government has had a dual approach to its wartime economy, intervening when necessary but often adopting a laissez-faire stance towards traders.
While desertions have contributed to the emergence of an armed rebellion since early fall 2011, they have failed to critically weaken the Syrian regime’s army.
Jordan’s Hirak grassroots movement of 2011-2013, recognized as a social and political protest movement born out of discontent in the East Bank hinterlands, has reflected the country’s rising political contention.
The Syrian capital’s military housing has helped cement bonds between army officers, which has buoyed the Assad regime during the current crisis.