Russia and the New Middle East: Russia’s Predicaments both Foreign and Domestic

American Thinker.com ^ | April 11, 2021 | Ted Belman and Alex Maistrovoy

[Kaslin]

Russia maintains the balance of power among these three alliances, in order to advance its own interests, exactly as the European powers did during their heyday in the 19th century.

One of her main tasks is ousting the United States from the region and simultaneously putting pressure on Washington in the global geopolitical games. (See addendum below) It is calculating, calibrated and clever realpolitik, contrasting with America’s ignorant, chaotic and inconsistent politics based on ideological, mercantile or personal preferences.

Israel is holding back the ambitions of both Iran and Turkey. This is a good thing from Russia’s point of view. In Libya and the Eastern Mediterranean, Israel is allied with the UAE, Egypt and Greece, which are holding back Erdogan. On a different front, Israel is cooperating against Iran and its proxies with Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Bahrain on all levels.

Russia is absolutely not interested in the victory of either Iran or Turkey. Below we will explain why Moscow sees the success of these states as a direct threat to itself.

[Bookshelf]

Russia has no one to blame for its reduced state. If had not been for the rise of Boshevism and Lenin it would have held Constantinople after World War I. If it had not been for the fall of Bolshevism it would still be a power in the Turkik world.

[Twotone]

It would be a better world if leaders would play ‘world domination’ as a board game instead of a real-life activity.

[SunkenCiv]

• Iran Ignores US Sanctions – Sends Tankers with 3 Million Barrels of Crude Oil to Syria – Biden Caves – Will Lift Sanctions for New Deal

[Kazan]

Yes, we should be trying to build better relations with Moscow and form an alliance with it to counteract China as the article points out.

But, for whatever reason, the left is determined to make an enemy out of Russia and waste resources on trying to undermine it.

[Kazan]

It's not a communist country anymore. It's country that is probably more conservative than the US and with a comparable level of freedom.

But, you we continue to want to make the Russians our enemy, especially the American left and our neo-cons. It's insane.

It's time to stop fighting a Cold War that ended 30 years ago.

[Eleutheria5]

They want to submit to China, which they believe is superior to the US. Alliance with Russia? What would happen to their promised rewards and perks if China is defeated.

Hong Kong? Uighers? Tibet? Tiananmen Square in 89? Fulon Gong? Software theft?

You have to break eggs to make an omelet. C’mon, man.

[Kazan]

They want to submit to China

Read the article. They don't. Biden's foreign policy is leaving them no choice.

[SJackson]

Middle East and terrorism, occasional political and Jewish issues Ping List. High Volume If you’d like to be on or off, please FR mail me.

[Wuli]

Actually, not only Russia but the U.S., prefers the status quo in Syria more than any major shift advancing either Erdogan's interests or Iran's. Russia in Syria means less complete control of Syria by Iran and a smaller Iranian presence than what otherwise might be. Russia also does not retaliate against Israel when Israel takes out Iranian-Hezbollah material in Syria. And Israel and Russia make sure their own forces are not operating in conflict with each other when Israel does that. Russia does not see itself in Syria to be a threat to Israel. It just wants to insure Assad holds onto power and they hold onto Assad - and that Assad knows it.

Russia has no interest in a nuclear armed Iran (right on the tip of Russia's southernmost border) but Putin is happy to see the U.S. playing the bad cop on that one. If the Mullahs got the bombs they want to have, but a new revolution threw the Mullahs out, bringing in a secular democratic government more friendly to the west, Putin would not be as hesitant as Israel in destroying such a force so close to Russia. It would not surprise me if even the mishaps in Iran's nuclear program in recent years came from Russian-Israeli joint covert operations - Israeli intelligence with Russian agents cooperating inside Iran.

As for the article from American Thinker, it makes some good points but, in one area it offers no proof for a conclusion it makes, here:

"Iran and its puppets in Lebanon, Iraq, and Yemen;

Turkey, Pakistan and Qatar, which support radical Islamic groups, most importantly, the Muslim Brotherhood;

Israel and moderate Arab regimes (Abrahamic Jewish-Arab Alliance).

Russia maintains the balance of power among these three alliances,

Yet the authors make no explanation of how Russia in particular holds the balance of power in either of the three groups it mentions.

In the second group Russia performs no "balance" between Turkey and Pakistan [Pakistan has more support from China than from Russia], no "balance" between Turkey and Qatar, no "balance" between Qatar and Pakistan and no "balance" between the three as a group and others in the region.

In the third group, Israel and the moderate Arab regimes, it is the U.S. that holds the balance of power between the them and it is U.S. power that invested itself into the creation of that alliance. Russia was out of it and holds no balance of power over it.

As for the 1st group "Iran and its puppets in Lebanon, Iraq, and Yemen" the authors have something backwards. Yes, Russia is some restraint and "balance" on Iran, but that "balancing" is (a) in Syria and somewhat in Lebanon, yes, but not in Iraq or Yemen. Russia has no interest in persuading Iran in either direction in Iraq or Yemen, preferring to be "neutral" in both situations. In Iraq the U.S., in spite of Iran's constant meddling, the U.S. still holds more cards than Russia and has the government in Iraq trying to move further away from Iranian covert and overt influence there. Russia has no "balancing" going on there.