On Russia’s motives behind its military intervention in Syria

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On Russia’s motives behind its military intervention in Syria

Journal Title: Security and Defence Quarterly - Year 2015, Vol 9, Issue 4

Abstract

This article analyses the causes of Russia’s military intervention in Syria as well as the main motives behind its unanticipated decision to get involved. Since the launch of the military operations (i.e. since 30th September, 2015), European and American experts have speculated a lot on the causes and aims of the Russian involvement. This article takes into consideration only the most likely and well-grounded reasons behind Russia’s military operation. While neither of them precludes or contradicts the others, an attempt has been made to narrow down the list to the key determinants, considering the high costs of the operation and the risks involved. Getting an insight into the underlying reasons can provide reasonable grounds on which to forecast possible scenarios for Syria and offer “political” approaches to settling the conflicts in the Near East. This article argues in favour of the geopolitical nature of the motives behind the military operation in Syria, and it provides a logical rationale for Russia’s striving to regain the position of a world power with a say in resolving vital conflicts in the region and, at the same time, to draw global attention away from the Crimean Crisis and from the failure of the Kremlin’s policy in Ukraine, and, last but not least, to overcome its international isolation following the annexation of Crimea.

Authors and Affiliations

Marek Ilnicki

Keywords

Russia military intervention Syria air raids air and space forces armed opposition ISIS Assad’s regime

EP ID EP706007
DOI https://doi.org/10.5604/23008741.1209148
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