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Syria Lebanon
Consistent with the Assad Doctrine, Syria stridently and
successfully opposed the May 17, 1983, accord between Israel and
Lebanon that would have normalized relations between the two
countries. The February 26, 1984, withdrawal of United States
Marines from Beirut, the June 1985 phased Israeli retreat from
Lebanon, and the abrogation by the Lebanese government of the
accord left Syria the dominant foreign power in Lebanon.
Emboldened by these victories, Syria attempted to capitalize
on its position and impose a "Pax Syriana" on Lebanon. On
December 28, 1985, it summoned representatives of three of
Lebanon's factions--the Christians, Shias, and Druzes--to
Damascus to sign the Tripartite Accord. The Tripartite Accord was
essentially a new Lebanese constitution, drafted by Syria, that
called for the elimination of the old confessional formula and
replaced it with a new system of majority rule and minority
representation. The Tripartite Accord guaranteed Lebanese
sovereignty and independence. However, Chapter 4 of the accord
stressed that Lebanon "must not allow itself to be the gateway
through which Israel can deliver any blow to Syria" and called
for "strategic integration" between Syria and Lebanon. The Syrian
blueprint for Lebanon's future thus sustained Syrian suzerainty
over Lebanese security affairs and sanctioned the continued
deployment of Syrian troops in Lebanon. However, Syria's
ambitious initiative failed when the Lebanese Christian community
rebelled against the agreement and ousted Elie Hobeika, the
Christian signatory.
As a result, Syria reverted to its previous policy toward
Lebanon, a balancing act that it had pursued since its 1976
intervention in the civil war. The re-infiltration of PLO
guerrillas into southern Lebanon and the reappearance of Israeli
advisers in Christian East Beirut indicated that Lebanon was
reverting to a situation similar to that before the 1982 Israeli
invasion, and battle lines were being drawn for a rematch.
Data as of April 1987
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