... rear-view mirror. There will be some give and take here but in the end, Trump will have built trust with Putin that allows them to move past these achievements or bygones and onto the next stage in the Middle East process.
Nikolay Surkov:
Russia and Israel —
Do Not Mess With Me in Middle East
While Kushner works directly with Israel and the Palestinians to engage in a 2-state solution, they will be apprised that Russia and America are moving through the backchannels on an alternative 3-state solution if the bilateral result is ...
... big Middle Eastern game is worth it
, since it does not promise any economic or political benefits; on the contrary, it promises only expenses. At the same time, judging by his campaign speeches, he clearly sees the threats coming to America from the Middle East, yet he is far from having expensive ambitions.
A pragmatic billionaire, as Trump bills himself, with his “America first” slogan, is less tied to the US’ traditional allies, Israel and Saudi Arabia, protecting and supporting whom has become a burden for the US tax payers. It has already led people to
call him a neoisolationist
. Yet allowing for an exaggerated campaign rhetoric and adjusting the Republican’s promises ...
... following: fight against "Islamic State", nuclear program in Iran and closure of the civil war in Syria, by way of removal of B. Asad from power. It may seem that on the background of a struggle with conflicts and crisis, the USA has distanced from Israel, the main ally in the Middle East. What is the current status of the relations between USA and Israel? What place does Israel take in the USA foreign policy strategy in the Middle East?
The USA was one of the first countries, which has recognized Israel de jure and the first ...
... witnessing in Syria the reverse process, and many players on the world stage are seriously discussing the question of the disintegration of the country.
Today, the Syrian conflict actually addresses the issue of how to balance Sunni and Shiite power in the Middle East in the twenty-first century. The most probable division of the Republic is along ethnic lines. In this case, the Alawites and the Shia sect will go to the Mediterranean coast and a narrow strip of Lebanon along the border with Israel, the Kurdish northeast of the country, and the Sunnis supported by the Gulf will go to the North-West and some southern areas. However, such a scenario is unlikely to put an end to the crisis, which has deep historical roots. That is why the attempt ...
... Vasilyev
, Political scientist, Consultant on politics and new media of Minister of Information of Israel (2009-2013), Speaker of the Knesset consultant (2013-2015), to find out more about the prime minister's plans for his new term, prospects for a Middle East settlement, and Israelis’ attitudes to the Victory Day.
What changes in Israel's policies do you expect from the new government?
Observers expected a coalition that would secure his convincing victory in the early elections but it gained only 61 out of 120 seats ...
... reiterates its commitment to the concept of the peace process, but it is conceivable that it will renew its efforts to promote the unification of the Palestinian organizations, whose fragmentation continues to hinder their participation in negotiations with Israel. A factor in the intensification of Russia’s attempts to revive the struggling Middle East process is the desire to preserve cooperation — in these times of crisis in relations with its Western partners, primarily the United States — in those areas where Russian and Western positions are close, positive experience has ...
... in US-Russian relations, the Kremlin does not want to lose track of the constructive cooperation with the White House in the Middle East peace process, where there are already points of contention between Moscow and Washington. For instance, there is ... ... Near East Policy even wrote July 14 that the "recently inaugurated President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi shares Washington and Israel's view of Hamas as both a terrorist organization and a strategic threat."
Moscow does not want to adopt too anti-Israel ...
... Saudi Arabia's relationship with America became intimate in the following decades, despite tensions following the Arab-Israeli war in the early 1970s. The reason why Saudi Arabia choose the U.S. as its major partner is straightforward, according ... ... Century of Regime Change from Hawaii to Iraq" (2006), "All the Shah's Men: An American Coup and the Roots of Middle East Terror" (2003), and "Crescent and Star: Turkey Between Two Worlds" (2001).
... resolving a half-century-long stalemate between the two nations over the future of a Palestinian state. With the release of 26 Palestinian prisoners, Israel bolstered Fatah movement’s position among Palestinians, who have grown quite skeptical about Israeli-Palestinian peace talks over the years. Yet, amid continued instability in the Middle East, the successful outcome of the negotiations—especially given the ongoing construction of Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem— is fraught with uncertainty. As Al Jazeera's senior political analyst,...
In light of the recent developments in Syria and the apparently imminent US military intervention, the blog will take a short break from its relatively academic style and its thematic focus in order to brainstorm and share some thoughts on the broader picture of what is happening in the geopolitical arena of the region. Dangerous Double Standards Bashar al-Assad has reportedly used chemical weapons to attack, essentially, his own people. The first, logically obvious question is why would Assad essentially...
