External Involvement in Syrian Conflict and Impact on Regional Peace and Stability

The Arab Spring has significantly affected countries in the Middle East region, and one of the Arab states that has also turned into a conflict zone is Syria. Years under the Assad regime, the Syrians exploded in protests that quickly turned into a civil war in 2011. Foreign intervention, namely by the US and Russia, has further complicated the conflict. With the intervention by outside actors, the conflict in Syria has instead turned into a war of proxies, involving regional countries, thus affecting the regional peace stability. In general, the event in Syria has shifted the regional political dynamics; further aggravated by foreign powers. After more than a decade, the conflict has remained unresolved. Utilising a qualitative approach where the data are derived from secondary resources namely in the forms of journals, books and articles, both in the physical and electronic forms, this paper has been written with three objectives. The first objective has been to discuss the political development and evolution in the Syrian war conflict. According to the findings, the conflict in Syria has been a response by the population, which has for years been repressed by the Assad regime, beginning with Hafez and continued by his son, Bashar. The Arab Spring plays a part in triggering the reactions. The second objective is to examine the role and involvement of external powers in the Syrian conflict, and it is found that both the US and Russia particularly, have their own agenda behind the assistance they have forwarded. The third objective meanwhile, is explain the impact of the Syrian conflict on regional peace and stability. The findings show that regional actors are also involved in the Syrian conflict, further shaking the stability of the region.

Kebangkitan Arab atau "Arab Spring" tel ah secara jelas memberikan kesan kepada kepada negara-negara Timur Tengah, dan sa/ah satu negara Arab yang telah bertukar menjadi zon konflik adalah Syria. Sekian lama di bawah rejim Assad, penduduk Syria telah me/etus dalam prates yang cepat bertukar menjadi sebuah perang saudara pada tahun 2011. Campurtangan antarabangsa, terutamanya o/eh AS dan Russia, telah menjadikan konflik tersebut bertambah kompleks. Dengan campurtangan oleh pihak luar, konflik di Syria telah bertukar menjadi peperangan proksi, melibatkan negara-negara serantau, dan seterusnya memberi kesan kepada kestabilan dan keamanan rantau tersebut. Secara umumnya, kejadian di Syria telah merubah dinamik politik serantau; diburukkan lagi oleh kuasa-kuasa luar. Selepas lebih sedekad, konflik tersebut masih be/um selesai. Menggunakan pendekatan kualitatif di mana data diperolehi daripada sumber-sumber sekunder di dalam bentuk jurnal, buku dan artikel, samada secara fizikal atau elektronik, kertas ini telah ditulis dengan tiga objektif. Objektif pertama adalah untuk membincangkan perkembangan politik dan evolusi konflik peperangan Syria. Menurut dapatan, konflik tersebut adalah merupakan tindakbalas daripada populasi Syria, yang te/ah sekian lama ditekan oleh rejim Assad, bermula dengan Hafez dan diteruskan oleh anaknya, Bashar. "Arab Spring " memainkan peranan dalam mencetuskan reaksi tersebut. Objektif kedua adalah untuk memeriksa peranan dan penglibatan oleh kuasa-kuasa luar di dalam konflik Syria tersebut dan adalah didapati bahawa AS dan Russia terutamanya, mempunyai agenda mereka sendiri di sebalik bantuan yang diberikan. Objektif ketiga pula adalah untuk menerangkan impak konflik Syria tersebut kepada keamanan dan kestabilan serantau. Dapatan menunjukkan bahmt1a pihak-pihak serantau juga terlibat di dalam konflik tersebut, lalu menggandakan kegoyahan kepada kestabi/an rantau itu.