Syria and the Return of the March

Peter Zeihan 4 min

Syria is returning to being a march. We will see more of the world looking like Syria.

  • Bashar al-Assad

Chapters

  1. 0:00

    The Fragmented Nature of Syria

    Syria is not a unified nation but seven distinct zones with different ethnic and religious identities.

  2. 1:19

    The Collapse of the Assad Regime

    The new government lacks the foreign military backing that previously kept Syria stable.

  3. 2:12

    The Return of the March Concept

    Syria is returning to being a 'march,' a stateless zone where chaos reigns without a superior power. Regional powers like Turkey and Israel now prevent stateless groups from establishing control. Demographic decline will cause more nations to lose their central authority and become marches.

Key points

  • 0:00

    There's basically seven Syrias.

  • 0:00

    The new government lacks foreign backing.

  • 1:19

    The coming conflict will be worse than before.

  • 1:19

    Syria was never a stable country.

  • 2:12

    Syria is returning to being a march.

  • 2:12

    Chaos reigns unless a superior power intervenes.

  • 2:12

    Regional powers now prevent stateless groups from rising.

  • 2:12

    Turkey and Israel now block ISIS expansion.

  • 2:12

    Iraq has consolidated into a new nation state.

  • 2:12

    More nations will become marches due to decline.

Who and where

People · 1

  • Drawing of Bashar al-Assad

    Bashar al-Assad 2

    Syrian convicted fugitive and former President of Syria from 2000 to 2024

    Photo 1

1. Photo: khamenei.ir, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons · Wikidata · redrawn in our house style (Bashar al-Assad)

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