Main Foreign Influences
NATO
NATO forces have supported western friendly factions in the Syrian conflict. Under Operation Inherent Resolve, the United States and allied forces have combated the spread of ISIS by conducting airstrikes in Syria. US support of rebel factions has been limited, but is maintaining a strong hand of influence in the region.
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ISIS
ISIS supports neither the Assad Regime nor the opposition. Acting as its own faction, ISIS geographically controls one third of Syria, as well as other regions in the Middle East. They are Islamic fundamentalists who claimed control over all Muslim regions. They often violate human rights with little regard..
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Iran
Supports the Assad regime and has provided the Assad government a variety of support, from financial to direct military aid. Assad is considered a valuable strategic ally to Iran and ties between Tehran and Damascus have always been strong. Iranian ground forces fighting for Assad were identified, contradicting Tehran's denial of ground forces.
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Russia
Russia, under the guidance of Vladimir Putin, approved airstrikes on ISIS targets within Syria. Russia intervened in hopes of stabilizing the region through the support of the Assad government. Russia has also agreed to the need of containing ISIS. In March of 2016, Putin withdrew the majority of Russian forces from Syria.
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Background
The global community, including the European Union, Arab League, and United Nations have condemned the Assad government's crackdown on protestors. As the region becomes more destabilized and the death toll increases, neighboring nations have grown more concerned about the conflict, fearing that the conflict will cross their borders. This has caused nations to support various factions in this conflict, further escalating the destabilization of the region. Unfortunately, the Syrian people now find themselves in the middle of this metaphorical and literal battlefield; due to the various factions each laying a claim. Since there is no sight of the end of this proxy war, Syrians are fleeing to other nations in hope of asylum. Germany is considered to be one of the ideal asylums that refugees are fleeing to.
Germany
Willkommenskultur: A culture of welcoming. This is how someone could describe the German people as they welcome refugees to Germany. As refugees come to Germany, they are met with smiles and warm embrace by the German people. Some believe this is because Germans feel guilty about their past and are trying to show the world that they are good people.
With 4 million Syrian refugees and 7 million Syrians displaced, Germany has found itself in a predicament as many refugees begin their journey to the German in hopes of escaping the civil war at home. Germany has taken on the bulk of the European Union's refugee migration. The German government has received more than a 100,000 asylum applications from Syrians, many of which have been approved. The rate of approval for Syrians has been about 93%, Unlike their US counterpart, Germany is an attractive asylum for several reasons such as:
- Geographically closer
- Lenient screening process
- Provision of housing
- Stipend of 140 Euros
- Free education and healthcare
http://www.bamf.de/SharedDocs/Anlagen/DE/Downloads/Infothek/Statistik/Asyl/201510-statistik-anlage-asyl-geschaeftsbericht.pdf?__blob=publicationFile
By Maximilian Dörrbecker (Chumwa) - Own work, using data and information from these web sites:Eurostat dataset migr_asyappctzm (direct download)Eurostat dataset tps00001 (direct download)FRONTEX Migratory Routes MapThis base map by alexrk, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=43280936