AUK Professor Discusses the Role of the Gulf in the Syrian Crisis

Associate Professor of International Studies at the American University of Kuwait, Dr. George Irani, participated in a panel organized by the Casa Arabe in Madrid, Spain, entitled The Role of the Gulf Countries in the Syrian Crisis.

During his panel, Dr. Irani discussed how the GCC monarchies are currently facing a new Cold War, which he illustrated by axis politics; the first being Iran and its unconditional support of the Syrian regime using the Revolutionary Guards and Hezbollah, while the other is represented by the GCC, Jordan and Morocco.

"There are two scenarios regarding the outcome of the Syrian quagmire. The first is that Assad survives and it will be a win to Iran and its regional allies.. The second scenario is that the war drags on for the few more years empowering the various Qaida and jihadist groups," he explained.

In his conclusion, Dr. Irani added that the GCC monarchies will continue to sail on, strengthened by a deep sense of survival that merchant states have always had.

Released by the Office of Public Affairs on the 24th October 2013