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Source: http://www.armedforcesjournal.com/pipeline-politics-in-syria/
Pipeline Politics in Syria
(Armed Forces Journal) Maj. Rob Taylor - In 2009, Qatar proposed to run a natural gas pipeline through Syria and Turkey to Europe. Instead, Assad forged a pact with Iraq and Iran to run a pipeline eastward, allowing those Shia-dominated countries access to the European natural gas market while denying access to Sunni Saudi Arabia and Qatar. These states, it appears, are now attempting to remove Assad so they can control Syria and run their own pipeline through Turkey. In Syria, the Sunnis have tried to unseat the Alawites ever since France installed them during the French mandate that ended in 1943. But now the stakes are higher, thanks to natural gas. The writer is an instructor at the Command and General Staff College, Ft. Leavenworth.