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Summary

In parallel with the detrimental economic status of Syria, the collapse of the Soviet Union and the 1990s peace processes regarding the Israeli war increased the distrust for the regime. [...] At the same time, in order to make up for the loss of external aid, the regime partly opened foreign investment to Western countries, and turned over the monopolies to the private sector and the military budget (Hinnebudch 2012). [...] In addition to the institutional isolation from the West, the ending of economic ties with Turkey and Arab Gulf countries accelerated distrust of the regime by the new bourgeoisie. [...] The concentration of wealth and resultant widening of the gulf between the elites and masses of the poor prior to the conflict has continued to deepen, reaching crisis proportions in the country and among the refugee populations resulting from the turmoil. [...] The latest chapter in the history of migration to the European Union is "Brexit" - 52% of the population of the United Kingdom voted in a referendum on June 23rd to withdraw UK from the EU ("EU Referendum Results..." 2016).