Mona Yacoubian leads a conversation on the situation in Syria, including analysis of the religious divide, the role the United States and other international actors should play, and recommendations for U.S. policy.

Leslie H. Gelb says military confrontations loom for President Obama in Iran, Syria, and North Korea, and he can't head them off with the usual duet of threats and talks.

Elliott Abrams criticizes the Obama administration for continuing to politicize intelligence leaks on Syria and Iran.

Syria is trapped on a crumbling precipice, and however it might fall will entail significant risks for the United States and for the Syrian people, says this memo written by experts on Middle East at Brookings.

A deadline for cease-fire in Syria is set, but the international community remains divided on ways forward. CFR's Ed Husain says many questions remain about opposition unity, leadership transition, and whether it will be possible to keep the peace.

Stephen Zunes, Professor of Politics and Chair of Mid-Eastern Studies at the University of San Francisco, says rather than military intervention, nonviolent resistance combined with targeted international sanctions will force the Syrian government to negotiate with the opposition for a transfer of power to a democratic majority.

There are no good solutions to the mess in Syria, says James Traub, a fellow of the Center on International Cooperation.

The Arab League summit in Baghdad is focused on Syria, but events on the ground appear to have already outpaced the regional group, says CFR's Mohamad Bazzi.

Ed Husain says former U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan deserves applause for brokering a ceasefire in a conflict where others have failed, but the conflict in Syria is far from over, and this is only a new beginning.

The government of the brittle, one-party state remains dug in against a determined but fractured opposition. Expert Joshua Landis discusses the fault lines in the Syria uprising.

The UN Security Council issued this Presidential Statement concerning Syria on March 21, 2012.

Max Boot says military action in Syria needs to be carefully thought through, but the Obama administration should not allow itself to be paralyzed by the Pentagon's reluctance to intervene in Syria.

Elliott Abrams says the politicizing of intelligence on Syria is part of the Obama administration's continuing defense of its failure to help the Syrian opposition and is a misuse of the intelligence community.

Leslie H. Gelb says foreign policy experts should be made to answer questions about the consequences and risks of their recommendations to engage the United States in wars with Syria and Iran.

Jonathan Tepperman says a decision by the United States to intervene militarily in Syria must be made with hard facts and an honest decision about what standing up for U.S. interests and values will entail.

Secretary of Defense Leon E. Panetta gave this testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee in Washington D.C. on March 07, 2012.

Elliott Abrams says that mixed messages from Washington ultimately leave the Syrian opposition to fend for themselves.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton gave these remarks at the "Friends of Syrian People Meeting" in Tunis, Tunisia on February 24, 2012.

In an essay for the Middle East Policy journal, Dr. Joshua Landis examines the Syrian uprising of 2011 and predicts Assad's regime's prolonged survival despite its growing isolation and struggling economy.