The Syrian phoenix - The revival of the Syrian Social National Party in Syria

This article addressed the surprising revival of the Syrian Social National Party (SSNP), in Syria since the early 1990s. This revival was a result of convergence between the ruling Ba'th regime in Syria and the SSNP, its historical bitter rival. This convergence on the one hand resulted from the SSNP's recognition and acceptance of defeat in its political struggle with the Ba'th and, on the other hand, the Ba'th regime's readiness to adopt many of the SSNP's ideological precepts, mainly those of "Historic or Greater Syria" and of "Syrian Unity" or even a "Syrian Nation", as part of its efforts to reinforce its standing in Syria and its need to redefine its own ideological beliefs. Thus, alongside this political defeat, the SSNP held the upper hand ideologically, certainly in terms of the vision of the Syrian nation, although with an Arab cloak - a nation with a distinctive identity of its own that had sprung from the Syrian region. This vision was appropriated by the Ba'th regime as a useful tool, and possibly even as an authentic credo, albeit while still paying lip service to the Arabist ethos.