Russia in the Middle East: the Syrian case

Absztrakt (kivonat)

This study is aimed to consider the foreign policy of Russia in the Middle East at the present stage. The Syrian crisis was chosen as the main case study, what allows to focus the research. An attempt to find out what is the role of Russia in the unstable region of the Middle East and what is the significance of the policy pursued for Russia itself, for the Syrian settlement and for the region as a whole is being made. In recent years Russia has become the center of various political, diplomatic and economic processes in the region. The purpose of this study is to give the most complete assessment of Russia's participation in the Syrian crisis and in the processes for the Syrian settlement, to predict further prospects on this direction. Since the processes in the region are interconnected, a lot of actors are involved in the Syrian crisis, it is necessary to consider this topic from different points of view. An analysis of Russia's policy towards the region from a historical point of view will be given, a global level of conflict in Syria will be considered (the US-Russian relations in this area), a regional level will be considered separately. Special importance is attached to the mediating role of Russia and its cooperation with Iran and Turkey in the Astana format. The study used both Russian and foreign sources in large quantities. This approach helps to consider the issues under the study most fully and draw more objective conclusions.