Russia's Middle East Policy: From Lenin to Putin (Durham Modern Middle East and Islamic World Series)

Synopsis

This Extraordinary Book Charts The Development Of Russia's Relations With The Middle East From The 1950s To The Present. It Covers Both High And Low Points - The Closeness To Nasser's Egypt, Followed By Reversal; The Successful Invasion Of Afghanistan Which Later Turned Into A Disaster; The Changing Relationship With Israel Which Was At Some Time Surprisingly Close; The Relationship With Syria, Which Continues To Be Of Huge Significance; And Much More. Written By One Of Russia's Leading Arabists Who Was Himself Involved In The Formation And Implementation Of Policy, The Book Is Engagingly Written, Extremely Insightful, Telling Us Things Which Only The Author Is In A Position To Tell Us, And Remarkably Frank, Not Sparing Senior Soviet And Russian Figures From Criticism. The Book Includes Material Based On The Author's Conversations With Other Leading Participants. Alexey Vasiliev. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. Sources Of Messianism And Pragmatism -- The Rise And Fall Of Nikita S. Khrushchev -- Up The Down Staircase : The Era Of Leonid Brezhnev -- Ardent Revolutionaries, Loyal Friends : The Ussr And The Communist Movement -- An Exotic Flower Of Arabia -- Through The Looking Glass, Or The Decision-making Process -- The Pain Of Afghanistan -- Messianism In Decline : The Time Of Mikhail Gorbachev -- Foreign Policy And Domestic Policy : The Ussr, Israel And The Palestinians -- Storms In Alien Deserts -- Cursed Nineties -- To Return, But How? -- The Children Devour Their Revolutions -- The Syrian Tragedy, The Birth Of The Monsters (2011-2015) -- The Argument Of The Aerospace Forces (october 2015-december 2016).