The economic landscape in Lebanon and Syria is interconnected. The collapse of the banking sector in Lebanon and the depreciation of the Lebanese currency have had direct effects on the economic situation in Syria and the Syrian lira.
Illicit trade, such as the drug trade, is rampant in both countries, with networks from both Syria and Lebanon coordinating their illicit activities. Profiteers from Lebanon and Syria are also taking advantage of systemic corruption in the two countries and of the dynamics of the Syrian conflict to generate income for themselves and the loyalists in their close circles both through licit and illicit means. All this is exacerbated by the conflict in Ukraine, particularly due to business dynamics connecting Crimea to Syria.
This event was developed with support from the Cross-Border Conflict: Evidence, Policy and Trends (XCEPT) project, funded by UK Aid from the UK government and looks at the connectivity of conflict across borders.
