Lebanon could be the key to a mutually beneficial Syrian recovery

The scale of the devastation in Syria after more than a decade of civil war is almost incomprehensible. The cost of reconstruction is estimated at between $250 and $400 billion. Meanwhile, neighboring Lebanon is contending with its own profound crisis; it requires $11 billion for recovery after recent conflict and a long-running financial meltdown that has plunged more than 80 percent of its population into poverty. At first glance, pairing one fractured state with another might seem counterintuitive. Yet, a deeper examination reveals that their fates are inextricably linked.