Arab Nationalism and Syria Essay

Soviet penetration of Syria arguably grew to its peak in the late 1950's and the early 1960's, although it would persist throughout the 70's and the U.S.S.R.'s existence. There are a couple of highly eminent events which took place that allowed the Soviet presence to gain the degree of salience that it did during the aforementioned epoch. The first of which was the ending of World War II, which effectively decimated virtually every other competing world power aside from the United States and Russia

in containing Soviet influence. This also coincides with the U.S. becoming increasingly wary of Arab nationalism and the threat it posed to U.S. influence. Secondly, the emergence of the new Israeli state in 1948 further deepened U.S. policy and involvement in the region while also creating friction between the U.S. and Arab states which were

At present, many Arabs have suspended their belief in the Arab nation, and now openly doubt whether there is a collective Arab mission. Those recently swept up by Islamic activism prefer to think of themselves first and foremost as Muslims, and do so without apology. However, for a significant period of time, Arab nationalism was considered the leading ideology in the Arab world. In the 20th century, Arab nationalism proved to be a dominant and influential movement. However, the inability of the

occurred despite the lack of democracy and democratic institutions in certain countries. One popular movement was the Arab Ba’ath Movement which eventually led to the formation of the Baath Party. By analyzing the movement’s history, ideological stance, goals, the actors, dissenters, and international aspect, one can determine how and why the movement flourished in Syria. Syria was granted de jure independence from the French in 1941. However, the country was not truly independent until 1946. For

were also their interests in the region. France aimed to preserved its centuries old ties with the Syrian Catholics, gain a strategic and economic base in the eastern Mediterranean, guarantee a cheap supply flow of cotton and silk and prevent Arab nationalism from infecting the French north African empire . All of these goals from both the British and the French were never going to be successful. With the help of Imperial Russia, the Western representatives divided up the region into specific French

religion and nationalism between the Jews and Arabs. After the Romans gained control of Judea, this caused the diaspora of Jews to all the parts of the world. Eventually, the majority of Jews did return back to the region, after the official establishment of the state of Israel, and this led to the Arab-Israel War of Liberation, in which surrounding Arab states, such as Egypt, Syria, Iraq and Jordan attacked Israel in order to regain this land, which originally belonged to Palestine. The Arabs were defeated

the first communist elected to an Arab parliament. The Suez Canal Crisis of 1956 strengthened the communist influence in Syria after signing a pack with the Soviet Union in exchange for military equipment. Soviet support to Syria was part of the greater strategic battle playing out in the Middle East between the Western and Eastern blocs. It was apparent that Syrian political power was likely to shift towards communism at this point. The Communist Party of Syria was becoming highly organized and

Islam weakened the effectiveness of Arab unity. In more general terms, Arabism may be viewed as an idealistic concept that offered unrealistic objectives, limiting its ability to become successful (Farah, 1987). The definitions concerning Arabism can sometimes be interpreted differently by scholars. For this essay, Arab nationalism and Pan-Arabism will be discussed as similar entities, these terms can be defined as a nationalist desire to seek a union of all Arabs in a single state. Whereas, Arabism

The Arab-Israeli conflict resulted not from a century long feud between Islam and Judaism, but from “claims to the same territory by competing nationalist movements.” These two movements, Zionism and Arab Nationalism, showcase the emerging question of identity during the 19th and 20th centuries. The Arab states, long ruled by Western colonial powers, emerged from the Mandate system weak and powerless. Why British troops did not leave Palestine until May 1st, 1948. Prior to this, the British proclaimed

The Formation of Arab Nations Much of the modern political Arab world was born at the end of World War I, as outside powers divided up their shares of territories that were loyal to their regimes. For example, Iraq, Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon came to exist along side the precarious state of Palestine. By World War II, these states had begun to want independence, and the following decades would witness revolution, regime change, violence, and, ultimately, a break from the grips of the Ottoman Empire