Russia and its partners can arguably win the war, but they cannot win the peace in Syria
Historically, the Middle East has never been a Russia’s strategic priority comparable to Europe, the ... ... and Syria.
The relative stability of the region started to crumble in the wake of the Arab Spring. The changing situation presented Moscow both new challenges and new opportunities... ... pull Moscow to its side of the conflict. The risks of alienating either Teheran or Jerusalem, or even both of them, are on the rise.
Finally, if Damascus finally has a complete...
Interview with Andrey Kortunov
Russian military presence in Syria makes Russia a pivotal actor in the Middle East. How Russia defines its role in the Middle East? Interview with Andrey Kortunov, RIAC Director General.
Russia is ... ... the Sunni-Shia disputes supporting those in the region who stand for religious tolerance and respect for minority rights. The Arab Spring of 2011–2012 changed many fundamentals in the region. Many of authoritarian Arab regimes were shattered having ...
... other Arab states. Until the protests in Deraa, Syria’s southwest, broke out, Bashar al-Assad had been convinced that the Arab spring’s revolutionary momentum would not spill into Syria. The regime seemed to have learned from other Arab dictators’ ... ... triggered a civil war.
As the violence in Syria escalated, a regional conflict morphed into an issue of international concern. Russia, Iran, Lebanon’s militia group Hizbullah, and China backed the Assad regime. The so-called “Friends of Syria,...