American society has a special relationship with Israel and feels obliged to defend that country. The German Berliner Morgenpost fears that Washington will not be able to handle two conflicts at once, the attention to Ukraine will decrease, and this will play into Vladimir Putin’s hands. Some American institutions have also already accused Russia of using the Israeli crisis to its advantage.
There is no evidence that Putin is directly involved in the Hamas attack on Israel, but “he is profiting enormously from the clashes.” “A new war in the Middle East is absorbing the West’s attention and could divert it from the armed conflict in Ukraine,” fears Berliner Morgenpost.
The German newspaper points out that Joe Biden has promised Tel Aviv “firm and unwavering” support because “America is Israel’s defence force and feels obliged to protect the country”. But “engaging in two crises would be too much for American society to bear,” and President Putin could expect “Ukraine to take a back seat” in the eyes of American society.
The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) in Washington has already pointed out, however, that Russia is waging an information campaign and trying to shift responsibility to the West for the new crisis in the Middle East. For example, Russian former president Dmitry Medvedev wrote on Telegram that “the US should have focused on a mediating role in the Middle East conflict” rather than interfering in Russia’s affairs. “This is what Washington and its allies should have been doing,” the newspaper quoted Medvedev as saying.
Berliner Morgenpost also points out that Russia has close ties in the Middle East. The Russian Foreign Ministry, for example, maintains contacts with Hamas. Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov has met with representatives of the movement several times this year alone. On Saturday, amid the clashes, the Russian Foreign Ministry said that the conflict can only be resolved through the creation of two states.
Russia also enjoys good relations with Israel. Vladimir Putin has friendly relations with Benjamin Netanyahu and, for example, until now “he has tacitly tolerated Israeli attacks on Iranian units in Syria.” The German newspaper, however, believes that if Iran sides with Hezbollah or Hamas in the conflict, Russia could give it “at least political support.”
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