Joshua Landis, professor of Middle Eastern Studies at the University of Oklahoma, discusses the civil war in Syria, the fragmentation of the country, the history of US interventions in the conflict, how America's strategy there works against itself, and how best to stabilize and potentially resolve what has become a protracted quagmire. NotesJoshua Landis bioSteven Simon, Joshua Landis, and Aiman Mansour, “How to Win the Influence Contest in the Middle East,” Foreign Affairs 100, no. 1 (February 3, 2021). Joshua Landis and Steven Simon, “The Pointless Cruelty of Trump’s New Syria Sanctions,” Foreign Affairs 99, no. 4 (August 17, 2020).  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.