11
May 2017
Past Event
Western Policy Toward the Syria Crisis: Looking Forward

Western Policy Toward the Syria Crisis: Looking Forward

Past Event
Hudson Institute, Washington, D.C. Headquarters
May 11, 2017
A Kurdish marksman stands atop a building looking at the destroyed Syrian town of Kobane, also known as Ain al-Arab, on January 30, 2015. (BULENT KILIC/AFP/Getty Images)
Caption
A Kurdish marksman stands atop a building looking at the destroyed Syrian town of Kobane, also known as Ain al-Arab, on January 30, 2015. (BULENT KILIC/AFP/Getty Images)
11
May 2017
Past Event

1201 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Suite 400
Washington, DC 20004

Speakers:
Lee Smith

Former Senior Fellow

Tony Badran
Tony Badran

News Editor, Tablet

Lina Khatib

Head, Middle East and North Africa Programme, Chatham House

Neil Quilliam

Senior Research Fellow & Project Director, Syria and Its Neighbors Policy Initiative, Chatham House

Andrew J. Tabler

Martin J. Gross Fellow, The Washington Institute

Did the Trump administration’s strike last month on a Syrian airfield reshape the world’s approach to the Syrian conflict? Does it reflect a significant change in White House strategy, and how has it influenced the policies of America’s allies, especially its European partners?

As American and European policymakers search for ways to end the conflict already stretching into its sixth year, a new report by Chatham House explains the need for a comprehensive solution combining political and military components: “The absence of a coherent strategic vision for Syria – or the political will to see it through – on the part of Western governments has contributed to the increasing strength and influence of ISIL and other extremist groups. These groups cannot be countered by military means alone, however. Without a political agreement to end the conflict, tactical measures for fighting extremism in Syria will fail, as they have elsewhere.”

The key question is: How do you get there? On May 11, Hudson Institute hosted a discussion examining both American and European perspectives on the war in Syria and Western policy. Hudson senior fellow Lee Smith moderated a conversation with European experts Lina Khatib and Neil Quilliam and their American counterparts Tony Badran and Andrew Tabler.

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