What’s Next for U.S. Interests in the Middle East After Syria’s Collapse?

<![CDATA[“Nature abhors a vacuum.” This adage has been proven again, this time in Syria, where the Turkish-backed Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) surprised many recently with a highly effective military operation that toppled the regime of Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad. The group’s success was enabled by several factors, including Ankara’s support, Israel’s devasting campaign against Lebanese Hezbollah (LH), and strikes against the Iranian regime and its proxies in the region, exposing the weakness of the Islamic Republic in the eyes of many in the Middle East. Vladimir Putin’s unjustified aggression against the Ukrainian people, a mistaken policy that has cost Russia dearly in terms of blood and treasure, the Assad regime’s corruption and illegitimacy, and the belief of many in the Middle East, especially the Iranians, that once in office Trump will be much more willing to use force to protect U.S. interests in the Middle East than the outgoing Biden administration, are also important factors. ]]>