Trotskyism and the War in Syria

The casual observer might think that Trotskyism has been quite consistent in its views on the Syrian war but in fact there are almost as many positions on the war as there are Trotskyist groups. And this is no accident. Before we look at the stance that various Trotskyist groups have taken on the Syrian war it is useful to provide a brief overview of Trotsky and Trotskyism.