Palestine–Russia relations

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Russian–Palestinian relations
Map indicating locations of Palestine and Russia

Palestine
Russia

The

national liberation movements. Between 1956 and 1990, Soviet-Palestinian relations were part of the then ongoing Soviet-American confrontation
.

History

The emir of Palestine,

emirate of Lebanon with the Russians in the 1770s. Beirut was occupied more than once before the Ottomans
re-established control.

After the

Russian Revolution of 1917 which put Vladimir Lenin and the Communist Party of the Soviet Union in power, the Soviet Union was established as a socialist state. In 1930, the Executive Committee of the Communist International described Zionism as "the expression of the exploiting, and great power oppressive strivings, of the Jewish bourgeoisie."[2] Also, the Communist Party of Palestine, founded by Jewish immigrants in 1919, upon admission to the Comintern, was strongly advised to "support the national freedom of the Arab population against the British-Zionist occupation."[3] But even so the Communist Party of Palestine had little political power. Furthermore, the Soviet Union under Joseph Stalin
had little impact in Middle East policy.

However, when World War II concluded, the Soviet Union emerged as one of the victors and as a result it became a superpower. The USSR voted for the United Nations Partition Plan for Palestine in 1947.

The Soviet Union was the first state to recognize the Israeli state de jure three days after the Declaration of Independence on May 17, 1948.[4]

From late 1944, until 1948 and even later, Joseph Stalin adopted a pro-Zionist foreign policy, apparently believing that the new country would turn socialist (as the country had been led by left-wing governments for several decades) and would speed the decline of British influence in the Middle East.[5]

The Soviet government was very cautious about the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) (founded in 1964) and the Fatah party (founded in 1958) during the 1960s. The Soviet government was unhappy about the first two PLO leaders. Nevertheless, the Soviet Union established some contact with the PLO leadership in 1964; in 1965 they established contacts with the General Union of Palestinian Students and the General Union of Palestinian Women. Soon after, in 1969 Yasser Arafat became a chairman of the PLO. Consequently the diplomatic connections with sufficient political reach were instituted and thereafter it became clear in the West that Arafat accounted for an essential undercover operative for the KGB for years to come.[6][7]

By the 1970s, with the loss of Soviet influence in Egypt, Russia sought better relations with Palestinian militants and Soviet arms and training were provided to militant groups.

The

Resolution 4686
in 1991.

In March 1985, Mikhail Gorbachev assumed power and he started his programs of glasnost and perestroika which resulted in many changes. The Soviet Union began to reduce its support for Third World and other leftist guerrilla movements and urged them to embrace reconciliation. USSR also encouraged (albeit unsuccessfully) Yasser Arafat and the PLO to recognize Israel before the Palestinian Declaration of Independence on November 15, 1988 in Algiers, Algeria.

During and after the dissolution of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s, Russia began to improve its relations with Israel, which had been cut off in the aftermath of the Six-Day War.

During the

Islamist trend in Palestinian society and militancy, weakened the pro-Russian Palestinian militant groups, most of whom had taken on a hard Marxist–Leninist
line.

Current relations

See also: Russia–Hamas relations
Mahmoud Abbas and Vladimir Putin. April 18, 2016 in Kremlin.

After the fall of the Soviet Union, the newly created

Russian Federation
continued the policy of supporting the militants albeit in a somewhat limited fashion.

Russia voted in favour of the

Arab Mujahideen in Chechnya.[10]

With his accession after

Candidate of Sciences degree[11] (the Soviet equivalent of a PhD
). Abbas has continued to visit Russia and has met with Russian leaders on several occasions.

In March 2006, after Hamas’ win in the

neoconservatives.[citation needed
]

Russia was critical of the

Gaza War (2008–09) and condemned Israeli actions.[15][16] In addition to 60 tons of aid consisting of tents, medicines, and foods, President Medvedev ordered extra humanitarian aid to be sent to the Palestinians.[17][18] Russia continues to support the creation of a Palestinian State to achieve lasting peace in the Middle East. [citation needed
]

Palestine has separate governments in the

national elections, the Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Alexei Sazonov said that Russia was pleased with the fact that the Palestinians were able to reach an accord and that Russia hoped that with the implementation of the accord there will be hope for peace in the Middle East. He also said that Russia always supports the national aspirations of the Palestinian people.[26]

Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in a meeting in Moscow in 2020.

On November 27, 2011, Russian President Medvedev sent Palestinian President Abbas an official letter of support for Palestinian statehood.[27]

During the November 2012

Federation Council, in the upper house of the Russian Parliament, Mikhail Margelov, said Russia is ready to facilitate reconciliation between Palestine and Israel. He also said that "It is very important for us that the parties complied with the UN resolutions. Our position remained unchanged: we want the Jewish and Arab peoples to live in peace and accord. We’re ready to facilitate the peace process at the bilateral level and within international organizations. Amid the ground operation in Gaza, the logic of events prevails over political expediency. In Gaza, there are different groups that do not maintain contacts. The situation is not controlled by a single centre. This complicates attempts to find a political solution".[34] On July 25, the Russian Foreign Ministry published a message calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza under Egypt's initiative saying "The events in Gaza arouse growing concern. We condemn the death of innocent people, primarily children, during the attack on the UN school in Beit-Hanoun".[35]

In October 2022, during a meeting with Putin in Kazakhstan, Abbas dismissed the US's role in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and expressed his desire for Russia to play a more central role as mediator, provoking criticism by Washington.[36] A senior Palestinian diplomat told Arab News that Russia "is a great country, friendly and supportive of the rights of the Palestinian people, and seriously supportive of its cause."[37]

Putin condemned the October

2023 Israel–Hamas war and said Israel had a right to defend itself, but also criticized Israel's response and said Israel should not besiege the Gaza Strip in the way Nazi Germany besieged Leningrad. Putin suggested that Russia could be a mediator in the conflict.[38]

In December 2023, Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that Russia's goals of "demilitarization" and "denazification" in Ukraine were similar to Israel's stated goals of defeating Hamas and extremism in Gaza.[39][40]

See also

References

  1. ^ Советская историческая энциклопедия. Том 4. Дагир
  2. ^ Spector, Ivan, The Soviet Union and the Muslim world, 1917–1958, Seattle: University of Washington Press, 1969, p. 172.
  3. ^ Kramer, p. 7.
  4. S2CID 147342045
    .
  5. ^ Paul Johnson, A History of the Jews (1987) p.527
  6. ^ Kimball, Roger (16 October 2023). "Who or what are 'the Palestinians?'". The Spectator World. Retrieved 16 November 2023.
  7. ISSN 0099-9660
    . Retrieved 16 November 2023.
  8. ^ Golan, The Soviet Union and the Palestine Liberation Organization, pp. 35–36.
  9. ^ Golan, Soviet Policies in the Middle East from World War Two to Gorbachev, p. 112.
  10. ^ "Distant Relations: Hamas and the Mujahideen of Chechnya". Jamestown.
  11. ^ Аббас на глиняных ногах (Abbas on the feet of clay), Kommersant-Vlast No. 2(605), 17.01.2005) (in Russian)
  12. ^ The President Tells Shamil Basaev from Hamas Archived 2015-09-23 at the Wayback Machine (Kommersant)
  13. ^ a b land-for-peace arab proposal Daily Star
  14. ^ "Russia hopeful Hamas will support peace road map" (Reuters) March 7, 2006
  15. ^ Israel Kills at least 225 and wounded 700 People in Gaza, 28 December 2008 Sunday 2:5 Archived 15 June 2011 at the Wayback Machine. Turkishweekly.net. Retrieved on 2009-01-08
  16. ^ Reuters AlertNet - Russia asks Israel to end Gaza attacks, let in aid. Alertnet.org. Retrieved on 2009-01-08
  17. ^ "Российская гуманитарная помощь доставлена в сектор Газа". 3 January 2009. Retrieved 22 November 2017.
  18. ^ "Медведев поручил оказать дополнительную помощь Палестине". vesti.ru. Retrieved 22 November 2017.
  19. ^ "Главная". www.mid.ru. Retrieved 22 November 2017.
  20. ^ "Beginning of Meeting with President of Palestinian National Authority Mahmoud Abbas". Retrieved 22 November 2017.[permanent dead link]
  21. ^ "Главная". www.mid.ru. Retrieved 22 November 2017.
  22. ^ Teibel, Amy (8 June 2010). "Israel Launches Investigation Of Deadly Flotilla Raid". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 8 June 2010.
  23. ^ "international". www.jpost.com. Retrieved 22 November 2017.
  24. ^ "Death of people in Israeli attack unjustified - Medvedev". english.ruvr.ru. Archived from the original on 6 June 2010. Retrieved 2 June 2010.
  25. ^ Incident with "Humanitarian Convoy" for Gaza, Ministry Of Foreign Affairs Of The Russian Federation, 31-05-2010
  26. ^ "Главная". Retrieved 22 November 2017.
  27. ^ "Official media: Russian president writes to Abbas to show support". Maan News Agency. Retrieved 22 November 2017.
  28. ^ al-Sharif, Asma (14 November 2012). "Russia calls for end to attacks, violence in Gaza". Reuters. Retrieved 14 November 2012.
  29. ^ "Egypt, Jordan, Turkey and Russia chorus condemnation of Israel's resort to force, US leads Western supporters". The Times of Israel. 15 November 2012.
  30. ^ "Putin urges Netanyahu to avoid escalation". Ynet. 15 November 2012. Retrieved 21 November 2012.
  31. ^ "General Assembly Votes Overwhelmingly to Accord Palestine 'Non-Member Observer State' Status in United Nations - Meetings Coverage and Press Releases". www.un.org. Retrieved 22 November 2017.
  32. ^ "Putin urges Netanyahu to stop armed standoff in southern Israel". ITAR-TASS. 10 July 2014. Retrieved 13 July 2014.
  33. ITAR-TASS
    . 23 July 2014. Retrieved 24 July 2014.
  34. ITAR-TASS
    . 21 July 2014. Retrieved 24 July 2014.
  35. ITAR-TASS
    . 25 July 2014. Retrieved 26 July 2014.
  36. ^ Magid, Jacob (13 October 2022). "White House 'deeply disappointed' after Abbas tells Putin he doesn't trust US". Times of Israel.
  37. ^ Najib, Mohammed (13 October 2022). "Palestinian president 'does not trust US but happy with Russia'". Arab News. Retrieved 22 June 2023.
  38. ^ "Putin cautions Israel against using tactics in Gaza like Nazi siege of Leningrad". Reuters. 13 October 2023.
  39. ^ "Lavrov appears to liken Israel's war on Hamas in Gaza to Russia's invasion of Ukraine". Times of Israel. 28 December 2023.
  40. ^ "Objectives of Israel's and Russia's Wars 'nearly Identical' – Did Lavrov Shift Position on Gaza?". Palestine Chronicle. 28 December 2023.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Relations of Palestine and Russia.

Diplomatic missions

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