The battle over Syria's reconstruction

Reconstruction is becoming the new battleground in the Syrian conflict—its continuation by other means. It is instrumentalized by the regime as a way to reconsolidate its control over the country and by rival regional and international powers to shape the internal balance of power and establish spheres of influence in the country. The paper examines the Asad regime’s practices, including co-optation of militia leaders via reconstruction concessions and use of reconstruction to clear strategic areas of opposition-dominated urban settlements. The paper then surveys how the geopolitical struggle in Syria has produced an asymmetry as regards reconstruction: those powers that lost the geo-political contest on the ground seek to use geo-economic superiority to reverse the geo-political outcome. Then the impact of proxy wars and spheres of influence in the country on the security context for reconstruction is examined. Finally, the reconstruction initiatives of the various external parties are assessed, including Russia, Iran and Turkey as well as the spoiler role by which the US seeks to obstruct reconstruction that would spell victory in Syria for its Russian and Iranian rivals.PostprintPeer reviewe

Consociationalism under examination: Is consociationalism the optimal multiculturalist approach for Turkey?

WOS: 000524326100001Some scholars maintain that the Republic of Turkey should construct a consociational model to manage its ethno-cultural diversity. This article suggests consociationalism is not the optimal multiculturalist approach for Turkey, where there is some degree of interethnic moderation between ethnic Kurds and Turks at the grassroots level. in the presence of this mass-based moderation, a consociational formula is unlikely to provide Turkish political leaders with political incentives that urge them to cooperate and enter into consociational power-sharing arrangements with their Kurdish counterparts. This renders consociational power-sharing arrangements difficult to promote or enforce in Turkey. in the absence of such incentives, any multicultural reform of the consociational formula would not be sustainable in Turkey. There would simply not be enough popular support for such reforms. There are some electoral strategies that offer both majority and minority leaders political incentives to move toward the moderate middle, form interethnic coalitions, foster interculturalism, and increase the number of intercultural citizens. These strategies are offered by centripetalism, another multiculturalist approach to managing ethno-cultural diversity