One year after the fall of the Assad regime, Syria’s transition has moved beyond the initial political moment and into the far more demanding phase of consolidating state authority. At the center of this process lies security sector reform.

In this episode, Gregory Waters, Senior Fellow at the Atlantic Council’s Middle East Program, analyzes Syria’s fragmented security landscape, the institutional and political constraints on reform, and the risks associated with partial or delayed integration of armed actors. The discussion assesses what has realistically changed over the past year and why security governance will ultimately determine the success or failure of Syria’s transition.