Turkey’s definitive stance on the issue shifted the Syrian resistance’s regional dynamics and event the faith of the Syrian regime.

Had ErdoÄŸan supported the Baath regime or had he remained a spectator, as the opposition demanded, it would have taken him only months to do the political harm to himself that his adversaries could in decades.

Does the PKK, in the context of Turkey’s Kurdish question, intend to lay down its arms under any circumstance?

Turkey should recognize that the neighbors with which it will likely share its longest borders are not Syria and Iraq, but Kurdish political entities.

The Syrian regime, with its latest move, has cleared the path for Turkey to be a more legitimate and involved actor of the current crisis.

The round table underlined the significance of Russia and Iran in the Syrian crisis, while highlighting the inefficiency of regional and international organizations.

“Should al-Assad step down, disaster will ensue.” This assumption not only asserts that a region with al-Assad is possible, but it insists that it would in fact be better. Is that really so? 

The massacre in Houla last week demonstrated once again that not much has changed since the uprisings started in Syria. The Baathist regime continues to kill in front of the whole world.

SETA PANEL Moderator: Ufuk UlutaÅŸ, SETA Foundation Speakers: Steven Heydemann, United States Institute of Peace (USIP) Muhittin Ataman, Abant Ä°zzet Baysal University  Date/Time: May 25, 2012, FRIDAY 14:00  Venue: SETA Ankara room, ANKARA

The Annan Plan was a miracle plan that could have benefited, in the short term, all those who were not disturbed by the bloodshed.

Syria has become one of the few friends Iran has left, after it was blatantly sanctioned by the West, the U.S and other states in the region after the Islamic revolution.

Russia’s future in the Middle East fares no better than the al-Assad regime in which Russia had been investing.

Israel wants regime change in Syria, as much as it wanted a change in Egypt, the heart of the Camp David order, of which the Syrian regime is branch.

UN wants to see the al-Assad regime, which killed most of the 8,000+ people killed during demonstrations, to allow people to protest freely.

What the Syrian regime fails to see is that this space carved between the political occupations of 2012 and geopolitical balances is about to expire.

As so many outside powers have clashing geopolitical, security, and economic interests, what does the road ahead look like for Syria?

The majority of the actors, particularly those who are closely related to the Syrian crisis, do not really talk about Syria even when they are speaking about Syria.