![]() ![]() ![]() However, she concludes that while Russia welcomes instability, she is "not sure it would be happy about an Iran-Israel war that would engulf Lebanon - and probably Syria". Notte adds that Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu and Russian President Vladimir Putin also "have personal chemistry". She says that although Russia's relations with Israel "have been more rocky recently", they remain extensive - with intel sharing, a huge Russian diaspora in Israel, extensive trade, deconfliction in Syria. "Chiefly, Moscow still hopes to keep Israel cautious on the Ukraine war, ie Israel not giving lethal weapons to Kyiv." "There are also several reasons why Russia would be cautious about backing such a vile attack on Israel directly. The Iran-Hezbollah-Hamas axis is highly capable. "And to be clear: There was no need for Russian assistance. "That said, I have not seen evidence of direct Russian backing for Hamas and this attack - planning, weapons, execution," she says, in a series of posts on X (formerly Twitter). ![]() She says Moscow only recently hosted a Hamas delegation and has also been involved in intra-Palestinian mediation while "trying to carve out a niche for itself" on the peace process. Hanna Notte is an expert on Russia's foreign and security policy and the Middle East, and director for Eurasia at the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies. While Russia has longstanding friendships with Hamas and Iran - which is widely suspected of having played some role in the surprise attacks launched by the Palestinian group over the weekend - the situation is not straightforward for Moscow. As has been observed by many commentators, the outbreak of hostilities in Israel and Gaza over the weekend will inevitably have some bearing on the conflict in Ukraine. ![]()
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