After Assad: Shifting power and new politics in Syria

After Assad: Shifting power and new politics in Syria

Fourteen years after the outbreak of civil war, Syria is at a critical juncture. Beyond its borders, regional tensions continue to shape its fate. Meanwhile, traditional global powers, particularly the US, remain largely disengaged—raising questions about the risk of inaction.

This week Mark Leonard welcomes Julien Barnes-Dacey, director of ECFR’s MENA programme, Ellie Geranmayeh, deputy director of ECFR’s MENA programme, and Hugh Lovatt, ECFR senior policy fellow. The team has just returned from a research trip to Damascus, where they met with Syria’s new government officials and civil society members. With the fall of Bashar al-Assad and the rise of Ahmed al-Sharaa, what is the mood in the country? How has governance evolved under the new leadership, and what challenges persist? What role can—and should—Europe play in shaping Syria’s post-war reality? And do Syria’s new politics offer an opportunity for Europe to counter Russian influence?

Bookshelf:

Kleptopia: How Dirty Money is Conquering the World by Tom Burgis

Movies: The Swimmers, No Other Land, The Seed of the Sacred Fig

Kingdoms of Faith A New History of Islamic Spain by Brian A. Catlos

This podcast was recorded on March 4th 2025

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episoder(632)

Mark Leonard's interview with Professor Joseph Nye

Mark Leonard's interview with Professor Joseph Nye

Professor Joseph Nye, political scientist and former Dean of the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, talks to ECFR Director Mark Leonard about his new book "Is the American Cen...

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ECFR's World in 30 minutes: Scorecard Edition

ECFR's World in 30 minutes: Scorecard Edition

In this episode of World in 30 Minutes Mark Leonard, Director of ECFR, and the three experts Susi Dennison, Kadri Liik and Jose Ignacio Torreblanca, take a look at the Scorecard 2015 publication and d...

5 Feb 201532min

European Foreign Policy Scorecard 2015 - Richard Gowan on Chapter 6: Multilateral Issues

European Foreign Policy Scorecard 2015 - Richard Gowan on Chapter 6: Multilateral Issues

Richard Gowan, ECFR Associate Fellow and author of Chapter 6, believes that there were several crises the EU had to face in 2014. How to deal with the increased migration from African countries was th...

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European Foreign Policy Scorecard 2015 - Francois Godement on Chapter 5: China and Asia

European Foreign Policy Scorecard 2015 - Francois Godement on Chapter 5: China and Asia

Francois Godement, director of ECFR’s China and Asia Programme, talks about the expansion of relations between the EU and Asia in 2014 through the EU’s confirmation of a free trade pact negotiation wi...

4 Feb 20157min

European Foreign Policy Scorecard 2015 - Susi Dennison on Chapter 4: MENA

European Foreign Policy Scorecard 2015 - Susi Dennison on Chapter 4: MENA

Susi Dennison, Senior Policy Fellow and expert on the MENA region, explains the EU's performance in the Middle East and North Africa in 2014, and the need for a new strategy. Hosted on Acast. See acas...

3 Feb 20155min

European Foreign Policy Scorecard 2015 - Vessela Tcherneva on Chapter 3: Wider Europe

European Foreign Policy Scorecard 2015 - Vessela Tcherneva on Chapter 3: Wider Europe

Vessela Tcherneva, ECFR's director of the Wider Europe programme, gives her analysis on the EU's performance upon dealing with the western Balkans in 2014 and discusses which challenges the relations ...

2 Feb 20155min

European Foreign Policy Scorecard 2015 - Thomas Wright on Chapter 2: United States

European Foreign Policy Scorecard 2015 - Thomas Wright on Chapter 2: United States

Thomas Wright, author of Chapter 2 from the European Foreign Policy Scorecard 2015, talks about US-EU relations last year and their convergence towards the end of the year. Hosted on Acast. See acast....

30 Jan 20155min

European Foreign Policy Scorecard 2015 - Kadri Liik on Chapter 1: Russia

European Foreign Policy Scorecard 2015 - Kadri Liik on Chapter 1: Russia

Russia's annexation of Crimea and the invasion of Eastern Ukraine turned EU-Russia relations from problematic into an urgent strategic problem. Kadri Liik, ECFR senior policy fellow and author of the ...

30 Jan 20157min

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