Small, hairy cockney returns to the country (5)
I believe the answer is:
syria
'the country' is the definition.
(Syria is an example)
'small hairy cockney returns' is the wordplay.
'small' becomes 's' (abbreviation - e.g. clothes size).
'hairy cockney' becomes ''airy' ('hairy' said with the 'H' dropped - a cockney accent.).
'returns' is a reversal indicator.
'airy' reversed gives 'yria'.
's'+'yria'='SYRIA'
'to' acts as a link.
(Other definitions for syria that I've seen before include "Country bordering Iraq" , "Ray is in the war-torn country, oddly" , "Country bordering?Lebanon" , "Middle-Eastern country" , "Country E. of Lebanon" .)