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When Vladimir Putin launched his “special military operation” in Ukraine a year ago, many experts and journalists concluded that this decision would inevitably have a fundamental impact on Russia’s foreign policy all over the world, including the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. For instance, there were widespread expectations that being distracted by the conflict with Ukraine, the Kremlin would not be able to sustain its military presence in Syria at previous levels. There were speculations that the special military ...
... Russia–Ukraine military conflict began. Five months into it, the world has undergone global changes. Under the new conditions, Russia’s foreign policy in regions of the country’s strategic interest is changing as much. Among such regions are the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), which are traditionally in the focus of the Kremlin’s attention. Arab countries have taken an intermediate position in responding to Russia’s actions in Ukraine. Some of them supported the UN General Assembly resolution condemning Russia. However,...
... Readings” was held. Within the framework of the meeting, which brought together 128 speakers from nine countries, there were three public lectures, three round tables, and seven sections devoted to the history, economy, and culture of the countries of the Middle East and North Africa.
During the conference, there was a discussion on the wide range of issues related to the Arab countries of the Middle East and North Africa. During the “I.M. Smilyanskaya Readings”, participants discussed topics related ...
The MENA remains highly important, alternately fascinating and frustrating but full of promise and opportunity in a changing world
UK–Russia relations have been, at best, complicated over the past decade. This has also been apparent in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), where London and Moscow have often found themselves taking opposing positions, most obviously over Syria, but also in various other areas. Yet, contrary to those who believe that states which have their differences must settle them all before engaging ...
... Libya and a less than impressive US performance in Iraq, Vladimir Putin clearly intended to teach the West how to ‘fix’ a MENA country. Particularly in the aftermath of the acute crisis in and around Ukraine, it was very important for the Kremlin to ... ... the Kremlin seeks a seat at the table, but it has no ambitions to chair the meeting unilaterally. This is the case with the Middle East Peace Process, where Russia remains one of the consistent champions of the Quartet format; this is also the case in ...
The infographic “Map of Official Development Assistance (ODA) Flows to the Arab Middle East and North Africa” was created using data on the allocation of ODA to the Arab MENA countries from 2011 to 2018.
The project builds upon the RIAC report “
International Assistance to the Middle East and North Africa: Managing Risks
” published at the end of 2020 by Vladimir Bartenev, Director of the Center for Security and Development ...
... Institute of Europe of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Associate Professor, Faculty of World Economy and International Affairs, NRU HSE, RIAC Expert
Chiara Lovotti, PhD candidate, Faculty of History, University of Bologna; Associate Research Fellow, Middle East and North Africa Center at Institute for International Political Studies (ISPI)
Grigory Lukyanov, Senior Lecturer, Faculty of World Economy and International Affairs, NRU HSE; Researcher, Center for Arabic and Islamic Studies of the Institute ...
Andrey Kortunov, RIAC Director General, represented Russia in the discussion.
On April 7, 2020, the possible role of the G20 in providing humanitarian assistance and stabilizing the epidemiological situation in conflict areas in the Middle East and North Africa (Yemen, Syria, Libya) was discussed in the course of an online expert meeting held with the assistance of The Shaikh Group political consultancy.
The participants of the event included Malcolm Rifkind, former British Foreign ...
... the Italian Institute for International Political Studies (ISPI), the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of Italy, held an international seminar “From Battlefields to Negotiation tables. What Role for International Actors in MENA Crises.” The goal of the seminar is to exchange views of Russian and foreign experts regarding the role and influence of regional and international actors in major crises affecting the Middle East and North Africa.
It is the second seminar RIAC is holding with ISPI and theMinistry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of Italy within the preparation for the fifth annual International Conference “Mediterranean Dialogues”,...
A Future Study
The Middle East is of essential importance to the world. It serves as a center for the world’s energy balance and for the transit of goods through the Suez. It harbors the Holy City of three world religions. It is a center of extreme and deadlocked conflicts....
