Bordered by Turkey, Iraq, Jordan, Israel, Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea, the Syrian Arab Republic has played a strategic role in the shaping of the Middle East in the 20th century. Syria is ethnically comprised of Arabs, Kurds, and Armenians. Although the majority of the population is Arab and Sunni Muslim, Syria’s religious history has been shaped by the contributions of other religious and ethnic groups, including Greek and Armenian Orthodox Christians, Alawites, Druze, and Jews. Syria contains some of the earliest evidence of sophisticated urban civilizations. It has been influenced by the Babylonians, Egyptians, Assyrians, Chaldeans, Persians, Romans, Arabs, Crusaders, Mongols, and Ottomans. Damascus served as the capital of the Umayyad Caliphate. After the fall of the Ottoman Empire and World War I, European powers created a mandate under which Syria became a French protectorate until its independence. The country later joined a federation with Egypt to create the United Arab Republic that lasted only four years, when Syria proclaimed new independence and came under Ba’ath party rule. Under former President Hafez al-Asad, Syrian foreign policy reflected both pan-Arabism and confrontation with Israel. Syria’s economy is dominated by its centrally planned socialist orientation and its massive defense and security requirements. Syria’s current President, Bashar al-Asad, the son of the former President, has spoken of reform but there has been little evidence of progress to date.