1/29/2024 0 Comments Ukraine russia war 2020However, even among the countries that voted in support of the resolution, most have continued to choose their words very carefully, refraining from explicitly condemning Russia’s – and specifically President Vladimir Putin’s – actions. The UN General Assembly vote on 2 March brought a bit more clarity as to how regional states were responding: almost all Arab states, along with Israel and Turkey, agreed with the resolution that ‘deplores in the strongest terms’ Russia’s ‘aggression against Ukraine’ only Algeria, Iraq, Iran and Sudan abstained. The only immediate responses to the crisis came from Kuwait, which condemned Russia’s actions – knowing only too well what it means to be a smaller state coveted by a much larger neighbour – and the Assad regime in Syria, which lent its support to Moscow by recognising the breakaway regions of Luhansk and Donetsk. This partially explains why most Middle Eastern states have been so slow off the mark in formulating their positions vis-à-vis Russia and its war. Regional powers were taken equally by surprise by Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, and by the West’s rapid coming-together and resolve to confront Moscow. Almost all of them have expanded their relations with Moscow over the past decade, both in response to Russia’s return to the region as a major external power (via its military intervention in Syria), and to adapt to the geopolitical reality of an increasingly multipolar world in which the US and its European allies no longer appear willing to guarantee regional security. Russia’s attack on Ukraine has put governments across the region in a strategic bind.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |