By: Trishnakhi Parashar, Research Analyst, GSDN
The Middle East carries the imprint of being perceived as an exceptional region, mainly due to its unique culture, geography, and not to mention its profound religious centrality, as being the cradle of three predominant monotheistic religions- Judaism, Islam and Christianity. While discussing about the Middle East, spotlight currently casts upon Iran, Israel or Saudi Arabia, but in the meantime two nations- Jordan and Syria remain pivotal and more or less overlooked.
The Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan and the Syrian Arab Republic, commonly known as Jordan and Syria are two naturally beautiful, culturally vibrant nations of the Middle East region. In contemporary times, the region is commonly known for two of its most flagrant aspects – ginormous oil reserves with on and off power struggles. However, both the nations are unique in their own ways, not due to abundant natural resources, as they possess little of it but sure they face reoccurring struggles within and between nations. Although such challenges are not specific to any one nation but Middle East has a bad reputation for ongoing conflicts.
In the beginning…
The beginning of all these difficulties can be traced back to the post-World War I period, when the Arab Revolt against the Ottoman Empire in 1916 led to a window of opportunity for Britain and France partitioning the region. Both Jordan and Syria, as we know them today have their modern borders and early political frameworks designed by the mandates imposed by these western colonial powers. Through the Sykes-Picot agreement, the British gained control of Iraq and Palestine, which included Jordan, whereas the French took Lebanon and Syria. The two mandates differed in implementation as the British mandate was more of an indirect rule, they chose to install local leaders, whereas the French ruled by direct civilian and military rule.
The legacies of British and French mandates understandably had a lingering impact on political matters of Jordan and Syria. In the meantime, their geographical locations have also played an equally critical role in enlightening why both the nations still matter in the Middle East.
Geography matters
Jordan is one of the few nations with a special strategic location in the Middle East region, as it’s located at the focal meeting point between two continents of Asia and Africa. Apparently, such unique advantage of location provides Jordan a crucial role in political and economic cooperation, not just within the region but has also elevating its stature in the international politics. Jordan is to a large extent considered as a connecting thread between the Middle East and the Western world as it remaining a reliable ally for many international powers. It also works as an ideal buffer state between some of the larger Arab nations and Israel, establishing it as a hub for political and diplomatic negotiations and a meeting point for different actors in the region and the world. So, it is not an exaggeration to state that its positioning made it a gateway between the Arab/Islamic culture and Western culture.
Similarly, Syria today is one of undeniably the most dynamic at the same time controversial location of the region. Syria is part of the Levant, highlights its historical and strategic centrality in the Eastern Mediterranean region. Syria particularly is the vital bridge linking the Mediterranean Sea to the Arabian interior, providing the routes for trade and military logistics across the region. The historic Silk Route, one of the important trade routes, passed through Syria, linking Asia with Europe. Empires throughout history has a common intention to control over this area. Even after independence, during the Cold War era, Syria’s strategic positioning never failed to attract the attention of superpowers, which later made it an arena for contending ideologies.
It is evident that, both the nations’ geopolitical location continues to bear importance in forming their policies in different spheres, particularly in matters of security and stability.
Balancing security and stability
On many occasions, Jordan under the leadership of King Abdullah, has led the way towards security and stability in the region through enhancing regional cooperation to tackle common obstacles such as terrorism, climate change and economic crises. Jordan has successfully managing its image as a dependable partner during the war on terror. Being a strategic partner in the fight against radical terrorism, it contributes admirably to deal with this growing nuisance. Surrounded by major conflicting actors, Jordan has become a venue of advanced security services that can combat security threats emanating from such volatile neighborhood. As a country that seeks to maintain peace and stability The Jordan Armed Forces-Arab Army (JAF) is among United States Central Command’s (CENTCOM) most dedicated and strongest allies. On October 26, 1994, The Wadi Araba Agreement was concluded between Jordan and Israel that officially ended decades of hostilities to enhance stability between the two nations and across the region. However, Jordan has been and continues to be one of the most prominent advocates for Palestinian rights in various international platforms.
Its contributions to regional peace and stability, has demonstrated its ability to play a mediating role in regional and international conflicts. The Kingdom is trusted by international actors; on regional level it maintains somewhat moderate relations. But, Islamist non-state actors remain suspicious and view it as an ally of the Western bloc. Jordan faces numerous difficulties on the path to supporting peace and stability in a turbulent region. Albeit its own limitations, Jordan continues to committed to regional peace.
Syria, on the hand, become severely entangled in terrorism and proxy conflicts/wars, often catching national and international eyes as a hotbed for regional and international rivalries. During March 2011, pro-democracy protests erupted in Syria against President Basher al-Assad, following violent government crackdown. Soon, before anyone could anticipate, the protests spiraled into an anarchical war-like situation in the region, involving government forces, rebellious groups, and militias.
Battleground for a Proxy-war
The Syrian opposition to Bashar al-Assad was quick to escalate an insurgency along with groups such as the Free Syrian Army. Anti-Assad forces received support and arms from states like- Qatar and Turkey. In contrast, Iran and Russia were assisting Pro-Assad forces with financial and military support. Such devastating situation with the collapse of local governing body, created a power vacuum in large parts of Syria, which paved way for Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), a designated terrorist group. Later, United States and other Western allies joined to launch a military campaign against ISIS, marking Syria a geopolitical chessboard.
Russia, maintains strong ties with Syria mostly to protect its own strategic interest, particularly the naval base at Tartus, a strategic gateway for arms and logistics. Russia, in fact tried to shield Assad regime from global interventions. The US, in this scenario, is trying to advance its own agenda, i.e. to checkmate Russia and Iran in Syria, and maintain hegemonic stability in the region.
The refugee crisis
Throughout that crisis, countless people endured extreme human rights violation, such as-massacres, indiscriminate killings, kidnapping of civilians, physical abuse, sexual violence, destroying civilians’ property, and unjust detentions. Millions of people unable to withstand the situation forced to flee to other nations. Since the beginning of the war, approximately 13 million Syrians have been displaced, and scattered around neighboring states, even in some parts of Europe. This rises another ongoing controversial issue of immigration and refugee intake. To the EU, stability within the Syria is vital. Because, if the conflict continues/worsens, the EU might face an increased flow of refugees.
When Syria’s revolution began and intensified into civil war, neighboring state Jordan guided by compassion, opened its borders. Within a few years, a huge number of Syrians crossed into Jordan, it became a home to more than 1.4 million Syrians. Working closely with international agencies, Jordan’s rapid actions involved setting up temporary shelters for the refugees; build refugee camps, most notably Za’atari, which quickly became one of the world’s largest refugee camps and providing basic healthcare services. Even though Jordan has not offered citizenship or permanence to these refugees, yet its policies seems to have gradually shifted from emergency relief to managing prolonged displacement.
The influx of refugees from Syria and Palestine has unfolded some significant challenges to Jordan’s economic resources and social services. The Jordanian economy has burdened by a complex set of internal and external challenges that, to some extent have disrupted its development. Massive population growth, high unemployment, strained social services, dependence on external aid and a scarcity of natural resources, such as water and oil, have collectively complicates economic self-sufficiency and curtails growth opportunities. While bearing all these ongoing burdens, the nation has been globally praised for its efforts in this regard and its promptness to manage this humanitarian crisis.
The fuel behind everything
Jordan also plays an important role in energy and water cooperation in the Middle East. Jordan is considered as one of the leading nations in the region in renewable and clean energy. It also plans to working toward the development of a hydrogen strategy to support green energy export. However, it is counted among the most water-scarce nations in the world, therefore compelled to depend on external sources, particularly on Israel for fresh water. On July 2021, Israel increased the water quota sold to Jordan by 50 million cubic meters for three years, later on 16 May 2024, amid bumpy relations, Israel and Jordan renewed its water-sharing agreement for another six months. Moreover, on November 8, 2022, the two nations formulated a memorandum of understanding under the auspices of the United Arab Emirates, to advance the “Water for Energy” project, which envisions Israel providing Jordan 200 million cubic meters of desalinated water annually in exchange for Jordan supplying renewable solar energy from a UAE-sponsored solar farm.
Regarding Syria, prior to the outbreak of civil war, the nation’s oil and natural gas reserves were self-sufficient in terms of energy supplies also had exported oil. Multiple foreign companies participated in development of natural gas resources. Exporting oil and gas provided almost 20 percent of the then government’s revenue. Syria, in fact, annually generated approximately to 29.5 billion kilowatt hours of electricity, though its consumption was only about 25.7 billion kilowatts. A significant portion was produced by thermal power plants, that fueled by oil and natural gas. But, then the war came into the picture and Syria transitioned from energy sufficient to become dependent on imports. During these times, Qatar, Turkey and Saudi Arabia have pledged to supply fuel and electricity to Syria. The revenue drop from exporting oil was a major setback in the regime’s inability to cope with public unrest.
The regime change
In early December 2024, Hayet Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) toppled the Assad regime. On March 29, 2025, Syrian people under new President Ahmed Al Shara, witnessed the new transitional administration. Amid regime change and security concerns, international momentum is growing towards state rebuilding. For now, with the new President taking office, opens the possibility of reopening trade and boosting its economy. That said, signaling a diplomatic initiative, Jordan’s Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi became the first Arab foreign minister to visit Syria to meet the new Head of the state. However, like other nations in the world Jordan’s approach continues to be a careful one.
Conclusion
In summary, Jordan and Syria face a series of challenges and opportunities that define its role in the world politics. Despite the common mutual volatility, Jordan, to a large extent has played a significant role in maintaining security. Throughout Jordan’s history, it has established itself as a comparatively stable with the monarchy and moderate nation in a region that is best known for conflicts. Jordan’s willingness and ability to continue strong diplomatic ties, manage the refugee crisis, effectively charting a path out to economic and political dynamics in parallel with its commitment to assisting Syria in its recovery and reintegration- are evidence to its resilience. On the other hand, Syria has a complex past but due to a blend of both avoidable/unavoidable circumstances it gripped in tumultuous crisis. However, Syria’s nascent efforts to revive, such as reestablishing governance, rebuilding infrastructure, relations- signals a cautious step towards post-war nation building. While the prospects for peace in these territories or, for that matter, in the broader region is uncertain, but one cannot deny Jordan and Syria’s importance in the Middle East.
