The New Patterns of War in the 21st Century: The War in Syria as a Case Study

The research focuses on the current war in Syria,from the early months of 2011 up to the events of late 2017,and assess if and how the conflict does fit within the categories of armed conflicts elaboratedso far by the main theories of international relations and strategic studies, in particular those concerning the so called “New Wars”. Moreover, the research would assess if the conflict in Syria has introduced new elements to the scientific debate. the first chapter provides an analysis of the scientific literature regarding the different approaches and schools in the theory of international relations. The second chapter reviews the scientific literature on foreign policy and war within the Middle East region: decision-making processes, alliances, regrouping and axis. The third, final chapter represents the core of the thesis, namely a theoretical analysis of the most important actors (state and non-state): their goals, strategies and policies, by reviewing the related scientific studies, social media pages, official, governmental statements, as well as by making use of data collected during the several research missions on the field, and especially from research centers in Damascus. Here, personal interviews have also been made with Syrian policy makers or figures that have direct contact with the decision making process in Syria. These data have provided the thesis with an extra advantage in understanding and assessing the fast-changing and fragmented situation on the ground