Since the war started in Syria, the Obama administration has been reluctant to intervene militarily but unhesitating in adopting an antagonistic attitude towards the Assad regime. In fact, for decades the U.S. foreign policy towards Syria has been characterised as confrontational, antagonistic and ambivalent. Taking the current debate over the nature and origins of U.S. policy towards the conflict in Syria as a starting point, this book explains the Obama administration s policy towards Syria by analysing the impact of image. Image theorists in international relations argue that image influences state foreign policy and causes actors to make certain policies and decisions concerning their relations within the international arena.

Using this argument, this book probes the impact of the U.S. image of Post-Cold War Syria on Obama s policy towards the region. In doing so, this book tests recent claims regarding U.S. policy towards Syria generally and the Obama administration more generally. This book will be of great interest to students and scholars of US foreign policy, international relations and Middle East studies. ".