ABSTRACT
Lebanon, a country with multiple conflicting identities, often appears puzzling to outsiders. The relationship between the Lebanese-Syrian countries has always been extremely strong, starting with the Lebanese-Syrian cooperation towards ending French occupation preceding the 1946 declaration of independence. Lebanon's political and social structure still suffers from serious constitutional and institutional weakness. In particular, far from being a harmonious experiment in multiculturalism, Lebanese society is extremely fragile and fragmented along ethnic, religious, and sectarian lines. Direct and indirect foreign intervention has been a key pattern in Lebanese political life since the foundation of the modern Lebanese state, blurring the lines between domestic and foreign matters. Direct and indirect foreign intervention has been a key pattern in Lebanese political life since the foundation of the modern Lebanese state, blurring the lines between domestic and foreign matters. The years of Syrian 'tutelage' between 1990 and 2005 continued to show the same pattern of Saudi's tacit endorsement of Damascus's role in Syria.
