Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and Syrian President Bashar Assad (AP)
Russia’s foreign policy has acquired a certain swagger during Vladimir Putin’s presidency. In Moscow these days it is fashionable to talk about the "rebirth of Russian power" and "doing away with the legacy of the 1990s," a decade when Russia supposedly played second fiddle to the Americans and Europeans in global affairs. Speaking earlier this year at an annual security conference in Munich, Putin said that his country’s foreign policy is and will remain "independent." …
"Independence" in these circumstances means "independence" from western, and especially U.S. influence. … With regard to the Middle East this means inviting Hamas to Moscow, continuing arms sales to Syria, carping on about the U.S. failure in Iraq and above all, acting as a chief international advocate for Iran. …
Moscow’s biggest desire … "is to keep a place at the top table of world politics." Being active in the Middle East provides one such opportunity at very little expense because Russia’s real political and economic interests lie elsewhere, namely in the post-Soviet space, Europe and China. The Middle East hardly makes it even to the top five of Russia’s foreign policy priorities. Russia’s favorite scenario for the region is for low intensity crises to continue as long as possible without them spiraling out of control. … Access the full article>>
