Publications on Russia

Following the signing of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) between the world powers and Iran, Russia was quick to call on the United States to stop the NATO missile defense deployments in Europe, on the grounds that Iran will no longer pose a nuclear threat to Alliance countries. However, while the agreement could delay Iran’s ability to break out to a nuclear weapon by up to one year, the JCPOA dos not call for the dismantling of Iran’s nuclear infrastructure. NATO can therefore claim that there is no reason to scale...

The activity of global jihad elements in Russia and the Caucasus is not a new threat, but the penetration of the Islamic State into the region, through an alliance with the local Salafist jihadi terror elements, bodes ill for the region. It is thus understandable why over the last few months the tone of the Russian attitude to Islamic State in general has changed. In the past, Russia’s policy was to trivialize the threat posed by the Islamic State both to the regional order in the Middle East and to Russia itself. The Islamic State...

Russia has of late been involved in a set of different international crises that are affecting the global system, shaping the regional and global order, and creating new challenges for Russia. The situation has made it necessary for Russia, as well as for all major powers, to adjust its policy to the new challenges. Last year Russia experienced an unstable period, being forced to cope with the consequences of its domestic economic crisis, along with international criticism of its policy in the FSU arena, especially in Ukraine, and...

This collection of articles, a joint publication of the Institute for National Security Studies (INSS) and the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, is an outgrowth of a conference sponsored by the two institutes along with the Russia-Israel Business Council. The articles focus on two major issues related to cooperation between Russia and Israel. The first is the regional security situation in the Middle East and the interaction between Russia and Israel in this sphere. The second deals with the current...

On April 13, 2015, Russia announced the release and upcoming delivery of the advanced S-300 aerial defense systems to Iran. The shipment had been held up for the last six years, even though Russia contended that these systems were meant for defensive rather than offensive purposes and despite the fact that Iran had already paid for them. Israel cannot ignore the development, but it must also avoid creating a serious crisis with Russia. Therefore Israel would do well to signal Moscow that it intends to reexamine a host of issues...

The significance of this week’s visit to Moscow by PA President Mahmoud Abbas should be assessed in the context of Russia’s increasing effort to influence the Israeli-Palestinian political process and advance a settlement of the conflict. This particular effort appears well-suited to Russia’s new Middle East policy, reflected in the decision, announced on April 13, 2015, to supply the S-300 missile system to Iran. Over the years, it has appeared that Russia was willing to accept participation in the Israeli-Palestinian political...

The Minsk II Agreement, reached on February 12, 2015 between Ukraine and the separatist provinces in the east of the country, did not lead to an immediate ceasefire. The Russian-backed separatists intensified the fighting and succeeded in encircling and defeating the Ukrainian forces in the Debaltseve bulge. Russia is thus working to establish the separatist provinces as a significant actor and position them as leverage against Ukraine’s tilt to the West. Overall, Russia is working to create a “frozen conflict” in Ukraine, which can...

On February 9-10, 2015, Russian President Vladimir Putin visited Egypt for the first time since 2005, when Mubarak was still in power. The most significant outcome of this visit, which reflects the notable improvement in bilateral relations over the last two years, was the signing of a memorandum of understanding on Russian aid for the construction of a nuclear reactor in western Egypt. The two sides also signed additional economic and commercial agreements, testifying to the significant increase in trade between the countries....

Trends that marked the Middle East in preceding years that were joined in 2014 by new developments are analyzed in this volume, as well as the response of regional and international actors to these processes of change. To date, no political or military response has been found to contain the threat inherent in the crises occupying the regional and international communities in recent years, let alone resolve them. It is therefore likely that these crises will maintain their central position on the international agenda both during 2015...

The Middle East of 2014 might well be described as a bubbling cauldron. Voluntarily or involuntarily, the main international actors – the US, Russia, and to some extent the European Union (EU) – were drawn into the maelstrom. The seizure by the Islamic State (IS) organization of large swaths of territory in Iraq and Syria, along with its attempt to expand into stable countries such as Jordan and the Gulf monarchies, forced the US and some of its allies to revise their policy of avoiding military intervention in the internal events...

Signs of a severe economic crisis in Russia, threatening the stability and future of Vladimir Putin’s regime, are multiplying. The economic sanctions imposed on Russia are among the main triggers of the crisis, along with the sharp decline in the price of oil, which – according to Russian officials – is the result of deliberate anti-Russian activity initiated by the United States. However, it is too early to eulogize Putin’s rule. He still enjoys widespread public support and projects a sense of being in control of the situation....

Even if no contract has yet been signed, Egypt and Russia are holding talks on the purchase of the S-300VM air defense system, considered to be of a higher quality than the systems previously supplied to the Middle East. The perception is that such a weapon would upset the balance of power in the region in a regional conflict and in the event of a conflict with Israel and the West. • Concluding the deal with Egypt helps improve Russia’s standing internationally, particularly because it involves delivery of new, high quality weapons,...