Publication

This brief examines the Arab world's response to the crisis in Syria. The author argues that Arab Gulf countries prefer to avoid confrontation and would have preferred the US to lead the response to the situation in Syria. However, when this leadership did not emerge, the Gulf countries eventually took a tougher stance on Assad's regime. In sum, however, the Gulf countries lacked commitment to military action and failed to adopt a clear and uniform strategy to deal with the Syrian question.