“Russia sees tensions in the north as an opportunity for dialogue with Washington,” she says Nino Absedza an expert on Russian affairs, who claims in an interview with “Maariv” that behind the Russian involvement in the attempts to regulate the northern border is a broader interest of Moscow – the renewal of the dialogue with the United States.
“It’s impossible to know. It’s really impossible to know what came of it,” says Absedza, referring to Israel’s attempts to involve Russia. “According to Putin’s tone, this is a way to start talking with the Americans, not just talk, but to really give the impression that they are ready to cooperate with the next administration. In perspective, this could be good for us, but now we can’t bet either way.”
“What interests Putin is less us and much more America,” Absedza explains. “True, Putin also wants to be an important person on the territory of Syria, but all the other things that interest him are, in my opinion, the ability to dialogue with the next administration in America.” She emphasizes that the key to understanding Russian moves is in Ukraine: “What interests Putin in this case, and we do need to understand it, is not necessarily the Middle East, but Ukraine. There he is waging war against the United States, NATO and the collective West.”
“During Biden’s four years in office and almost three years of the war in Ukraine, there was no dialogue,” she adds. “Now he sees that the situation in the world, following the election of Trump, can change, and in my opinion he is giving hints – ‘Here I am here too and you can talk to me’.”
As for the minister’s visit Ron Drummer In Moscow, Absedza expresses skepticism: “We can’t talk about anything meaningful right now. Do we want to bring in Russia as a significant player? I don’t think it will be a significant player. According to the news I read and see, Russia will have no role in Lebanon, the important role is to prevent the transfer of Arms from Iran to Hezbollah. But we can’t talk about the meaning, as long as we don’t see a result here. In my opinion, this is only the beginning of a dialogue. It’s not a dialogue between Jerusalem and Moscow, but a future dialogue between Putin and Donald Trump”.
Absedza also refers to the reports of a connection between Putin and Trump: “I saw that the Washington Post published that Putin and Trump spoke on the phone. In America they do not give any comments, and in Russia, at least as of this moment, Putin’s spokesman said that there was not and was not created. There was no real dialogue between the two leaders, But without any doubt I am sure that Putin both wants and needs this dialogue.”
“Ever since Russia invaded Ukraine, there has basically been no dialogue,” Absedza concludes. “There was no perspective for dialogue here, and with the rise of Trump, when that happens, the Russians see that there is an opportunity and make their voice heard. They want to restore Russia’s international status, which it lost when it entered Ukraine… the significance cannot be discussed,” she emphasizes , “Only when we understand if there is a result, and now in my opinion it is far. Once again I repeat – because this dialogue between Moscow and Washington, that is what interests both sides on both sides of the ocean now.”