... high-ranking officials from these countries have paid official visits to Russia in June 2023, including UAE’s President and Qatar’s Prime Minister. As for the UAE, it is worth noting that the country became the greatest reseller of Russian gold in 2022. Russia’s gold exports to the Emirates in 2022 totaled 75.7 tons or $4.3 billion.
Another important factor shaping the Middle East’s approach to international relations is Turkey’s foreign policy. Particularly important, is Turkey’s position on Syria prior to the presidential elections in May 2023, and the new aspects it has now acquired following the victory of incumbent President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Judging by the ...
... harmful – there is a danger of going completely off-topic. But the range of issues resonates, at least in part, with what has always been there.
Trends in the Arab World, and in Arab relations with Iran, offer hope for normalization. The roles of Russia and China – not leading, but supporting – could be a catalyst for positive trends. The story of the South Caucasus is far from over and promises much human drama, but the deadlock it has been in for so long is a thing of the past. And so it ...
... Russia, the Turks have been actively building up their presence in almost all sectors. The country understands that Russia’s position largely determines the level of its presence in a number of regions, including Central Asia, the Caucasus, the Middle East, the Black Sea region, etc. Russia and Turkey interact effectively within the framework of international formats to negotiate settlements in Syria, Libya, Karabakh.
Turkey is seeking to play a mediating role in the Ukrainian crisis. Ankara sees this as an opportunity ...
... cautious in dealing with Russian counterparties. The Indian market is important for Russia, but India itself, like China, can hardly be considered a “black knight” yet.
The same can be said about Turkey. Trade volumes have showт significant growth. Turkey has become an important hub for the supply of goods to Russia by companies that have left the country, as well as for the re-export of Russian goods. Turkish banks experimented with the MIR card. But here, too, there are pitfalls. In September 2022, Turkish banks, as well as financial institutions in such ...
... foreign affairs, defense, economy, etc.), which is indicative of the numerous issues on the Russian-Syrian agenda.
Besides, the arrival of the Syrian president and his delegation coincided with technical talks between the deputy foreign ministers of Iran, Russia, Syria and Turkey, which were to have taken place on March 15-16 and were intended to pave the way for a meeting of the foreign ministers. The talks have been postponed for “a technical reason.”. Coincidentally or intentionally, Assad’s visit also concurred ...
... 2017. In this sense, Russia will have to work patiently with the Syrian leadership as well, which so far has tended to equate any autonomous status with separatism.
Third.
The Biden administration’s response to the triple-format talks between Syria, Turkey, and Russia was quite revealing. In this particular situation, the U.S. has openly shown itself to be a “spoiler” of multilateral efforts to unblock a Syrian settlement. The State Department’s spokesman made it
clear
that the U.S. does not support the ...
... President of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan is trying to solve the problem posed by Syrian Kurds by combining force with the possibility of normalizing relations with Syria. Back in December of last year, he proposed to hold a meeting between the presidents of Russia, Turkey, and Syria. According to Erdogan, this meeting should be after negotiations take place between head Defense Ministers, head Foreign Affairs Ministers, as well as heads of intelligence services of the three countries.
Ivan Bocharov:
Syria: A Chess ...
The Turkish military operation in Syria does not meet Russia’s interests
Turkey's forthcoming ground operation in Syria, which Ankara regularly warns about, has become a top concern for the international community. In November 2022, Turkish armed forces launched air strikes on parts of northern Syria with Operation Claw-Sword....
... keep Ankara from another invasion of northeastern Syria. Now Erdogan has a serious trump card that is not easy to beat, and any attempt to press Turkey on this issue can only lead to a worsening of relations. This would be extremely undesirable for Russia, since Turkey remains its leading economic partner and logistics hub after cutting ties with the West.
In addition, one should not discount the very desire to foot on both camps and the provocative actions of Kurdish formations in the SAR, which did not stop ...
...
and it is seen as a concession on the part of the U.S. By the same token, Moscow will try to get something in exchange for a CBM prolongation, although this looks less likely in the current circumstances. What can it potentially be?
On Apr. 23 2022, Turkey closed its sky for Russia’s military and civilian aircraft heading for Syria. It did not seriously affect Moscow’s ability to deliver staff and equipment to Syria but Russia might seek to get things back to normal;
Moscow might seek the U.S. to turn a blind eye on ...
