The Syrian Uprising: The View from Tehran

The increasingly violent and bloody confrontation between Bashar Assad's regime and opposition forces, now 15 months old, has generated much concern in Iran, on two counts. First, the collapse of the regime would be a significant blow to Iran's strategic interests. Syria has been one of the Islamic Republic's closest and most important allies from the moment of the Shah's overthrow in 1979, and the fall of the Assad regime would seriously affect Iran's ability to project power into the eastern Mediterranean-Levant region. Second, and less noticed by Western analysts, is that the events in Syria stand in polar opposition to Iran's narrative of the Arab Spring uprisings as an "Islamic Awakening" inspired by Iran's own 1979 Islamic Revolution. Hence, it threatens not only the viability of that narrative, but the Iranian authorities' use of that narrative to justify their own rule.

Part of the reason for Syria's importance to Iran is its strategic position vis-à-vis Israel. With Syria's help, Iran has been able to extend its influence throughout the Levant, particularly by supporting and arming the Lebanese Hezbollah and Palestinian groups. Iran's ability to shape events in the region is both a source and symbol of its strategic power....

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