This episode of The IR thinker examines Russia’s evolving role in the Middle East with Daniel Rakov, focusing in particular on Moscow’s strategic objectives in Syria, its military partnership with the Assad regime and the significance of bases such as Latakia and Tartus. The discussion then turns to Russia’s relations with Iran and China, its energy and nuclear diplomacy in the region, and the ways in which the Russo-Ukrainian war has reshaped Russian ties with Israel and its broader media image.

Daniel Rakov

Daniel Rakov is a specialist on Russian policy in the Middle East and great power competition in the region. He is a senior researcher at Tel Aviv University’s Elrom Center for Air and Space Studies and at the Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and Security, following more than twenty years of service in the Israel Defense Forces, primarily in military intelligence. From 2019 to 2021 he was a research fellow in the Russian Studies Programme at the Institute for National Security Studies in Tel Aviv.

Publications:

The Growing Impact of the Civilian Population on the Modern Battlefield: A Glimpse into the Russia-Ukraine War

Russia’s Power Image After Prigozhin’s Uprising

The Netanyahu Government’s Approach to Russia and Ukraine

The Reasoning Behind Israel’s Refusal to Supply Weapons to Ukraine

Content

00:00 - Introduction

00:44 - Russia’s Strategic Aims in Syria

02:36 - Military Synergy: Russia and Syria

13:35 - Latakia and Tartus: Russia’s Operational Bases

16:26 - Implications of a Russia-Iran Arms Exchange

24:07 - The Basis of Russia-Iran Cooperation

27:03 - China in the Middle East: Boon or Bane for Russia?

31:37 - Ukraine’s Effect on Russian-Israeli Relations

41:39 - Moscow’s Take on the Abraham Accords

47:48 - Russian Energy and Nuclear Diplomacy

57:12 - Media Portrayals in the Russo-Ukrainian Conflict

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