Over the past year, there has been a drastic change in the political scenario in Syria, which is now engulfed with violent sectarian conflict. Gateway House speaks to former Indian Ambassador to Syria, Rajendra Abhyankar, about the changing political scenario and the implications of the ongoing conflict in Syria.

After the crass misuse of Responsibility to Protect (R2P) in Libya, the broader question is: where is R2P headed? Do the events in Libya herald a more explicit assertion of this doctrine in other parts of the world? And should India rethink its viewpoint towards this ambiguous doctrine?

Former Indian Ambassador to Syria, Rajendra Abhyankar, speaks to Gateway House’s Samyukta Lakshman about the developments in Syria, the impact on India-Syria relations and the future of the region.

A new United Nations doctrine is revolutionising the manner in which Western powers achieve regime change. Under the pretext of “Responsibility to Protect” –as the doctrine is named –armed intervention does not depend on the aspirations of a populace but the facilitation of existing power equations

As the Arab world reinvents itself in real time, the rest of the world must begin to understand the region as something more than a source for oil and a market for armaments and consumer goods.