INTERNATIONAL POLICY ANALYSIS The Reconstruction of Syria Socially Just Re-integration and Peace Building or Regime Re-consolidation? SALAM SAID AND JIHAD YAZIGI December 2018 „ „ Reconstruction can be an opportunity to create a better and more stable future, rather than just rebuilding and reproducing the pre-war economic, socio-political and institutional conditions which often are key contributing causes of the conflict in the first place. „ „ The Syrian regime and its partners have already set their terms for reconstruction. Un­der these terms, any direct funding of the Syrian government or of recently»elected« local authorities – who really are local warlords and members of criminal networks that came to power during the conflict – would lead to very negative consequences. By following»rigged rules of the game«, old structures would be fortified and im­balances of power and opportunities would be increased. „ „ Western powers will not be able to use reconstruction as a political tool, as Assad has already made his calculations and knows that he will not receive large-scale funding to help with his stabilisation. Therefore, the sanction system might instead be rede­signed to target both the businessmen allied with the regime and those projects that discriminate specific segments of the population according to political loyalty, are based on the illegal seizure of public land or cause the dispossession of properties.