Asad's legacy : Syria in transition / Eyal Zisser ; with a foreword by Itamar Rabinovich.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Machine generated contents note: Introduction: From "The Struggle for Syria" to "The -- Struggle for the Middle East" -- The roots of the Syrian state -- Syria underAsad, 1970-85 -- - Thefirstsixyears, 1970-76 -- -The strugglefor survival, 1976-83 -- -Recovery, 1983-85 -- Part I -- SYRIA UNDER ASAD - REGIME AND STATE -- 1. Asad's Regime - Three Orbits: 'Alawi, Syrian and Arab -- The 'Alawi orbit -- The Syrian orbit -- The Arab orbit -- 2. The System of Government in Asad's Syria -- The formal apparatus of government -- The informal ruling apparatus -- The Syrian elite -- Part II -- A NEW PATH -- 3. The Friendship that Failed- Syriain the Shadowofthe -- Soviet Collapse -- The rise andfall ofMikhail Gorbachev -- Disappearance of the Soviet bulwark -- Fears about the United States -- SovietJewish immigration to Israel -- 4. Start of the New Path - Syria during the Gulf Crisis -- Syria on the eve of the Gulf crisis - in the shadow of -- rivalry with Iraq -- From the Iraqi invasion ofKuwait to "Desert Storm" -- Improved relations with the United States and the West -- Syria during "Desert Storm" -- Syria and the Gulf crisis - the domestic front -- Aftermath of the war: Syria, Iraq'sfuture and the security -- arrangements in the Gulf -- Part III -- SYRIAN FOREIGN POLICYIN THE 1990s -- 5. Syria between East and West -- 1991 - a landmark year -- Syrian foreign policy - principles and goals -- Toward a new regional order -- Toward an old order -- Syria in the regional arena -- - Syria and thePalestinian Authority -- - Syria andJordan -- - Syria and Turkey -- 6. Syria and Israel - On the Road to Peace -- The protracted struggle, 1970-91 -- The peace negotiations, 1991-96 -- - The brake on progress -- -Fear of domestic instability -- - Concernfor Syria 's regional standing -- The Netanyahu period, 1996-99 -- After the victory ofEhud Barak -- 7. Syria in Lebanon -- Syrian-Lebanese relations: the historical background -- Syrian policy in Lebanon during the civil war -- (1) Direct involvement alongside the Christian-Maronite -- camp, June 1976-November 1977 -- (2) Thestrugglewith Israelforcontrol, 1977-85 -- (3) Syria in Lebanon - on the road of return -- (4) Michel 'Awn and his anti-Syrian campaign, 1988-90 -- (5) The Ta'ifAccord -- (6) Syria andLebanon after Ta ann, 1989 -- 7) Election ofa new president in -- Resumption of normal life in Lebanon -- Syria's involvement in Lebanon, 2 non -- Damascus and Jerusalem n southern Lebanon -- Part IV -- INSIDE SYRIA- A COUNTRYAT A CROSSROADS -- 8. The Struggle over Succession -- Roots of the succession struggle -- After Basil's death - the rise of Basha r asset -- Syria's security and military leaders p -- turned liability -- The next generation in the politicalleads -- 9. State, SocietyandEconom in the 1990s -- The growing demand for more opennd e -- Society and the economy - continut au in the struggle? -- The Islamic movement and theregie pause -- Conclusion: Asad's Legacy: Syria in Tradion -- Index.