NEW DELHI: On Monday, Russian President Vladimir Putin made his first call to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu since the deadly Hamas attack on October 7. During the conversation, Putin briefed Netanyahu on discussions he had with leaders from the region and the Palestinian Authority.
The Russian President also said he was ready to “coordinate efforts with all constructive partners to put an end to hostilities and stabilise the situation as quickly as possible”.
For some observers, Netanyahu must have been disappointed with ‘dear friend’ Putin’s call. According to a report in the Economist, Netanyahu, who has visited Russia a dozen times in recent years, must have been surprised that it took Russia’s president nine days to pick up the phone.
As per the Economist, Russia’s ever-growing relations with Iran were already causing discomfort in Israel. Now, both Russia and Iran are likely to be clear beneficiaries of the Israel-Hamas war.
“A wider war would probably bring two benefits to both Russia and Iran. The first would be a spike in oil and gas prices that would help both ailing economies and give Mr Putin extra money to fund his war in Ukraine. The second would be to disrupt America’s plans for the Middle East,” the Economist report said.
“As oil prices go up, this enables them to continue spending on arms production and it also helps them cover some budget deficits,” Ann Marie Dailey, a policy researcher at Rand Corporation, told Bloomberg. “Russia absolutely gains an advantage from this in the short-term.”
Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov said that President Vladimir Putin’s goals “will be reached sooner” if the US shifts its focus to the Israel conflict and slows down its arms supplies to Ukraine.
According to two sources, who spoke to Bloomberg on condition of anonymity due to the delicate nature of the matter, Russia stands to benefit from the war between Israel and Hamas. The sources told Bloomberg that the conflict could divert US and European attention away from the war in Ukraine, even though Russia is worried about its escalation.
However, if Hezbollah joins the Israel-Hamas war, it may complicate things for everyone. It may force the US to get directly involved in the war and then no one knows how the conflict will unfold. So, a limited Israel-Hamas war is surely likely to benefit Russia and Putin in the short term but a wider regional conflict could turn out to be a black swan event with uncertain outcomes.
Watch Vladimir Putin speaks to Netanyahu over Israel-Hamas War after 11 days, promises measures to prevent escalation
The Russian President also said he was ready to “coordinate efforts with all constructive partners to put an end to hostilities and stabilise the situation as quickly as possible”.
For some observers, Netanyahu must have been disappointed with ‘dear friend’ Putin’s call. According to a report in the Economist, Netanyahu, who has visited Russia a dozen times in recent years, must have been surprised that it took Russia’s president nine days to pick up the phone.
As per the Economist, Russia’s ever-growing relations with Iran were already causing discomfort in Israel. Now, both Russia and Iran are likely to be clear beneficiaries of the Israel-Hamas war.
“A wider war would probably bring two benefits to both Russia and Iran. The first would be a spike in oil and gas prices that would help both ailing economies and give Mr Putin extra money to fund his war in Ukraine. The second would be to disrupt America’s plans for the Middle East,” the Economist report said.
“As oil prices go up, this enables them to continue spending on arms production and it also helps them cover some budget deficits,” Ann Marie Dailey, a policy researcher at Rand Corporation, told Bloomberg. “Russia absolutely gains an advantage from this in the short-term.”
Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov said that President Vladimir Putin’s goals “will be reached sooner” if the US shifts its focus to the Israel conflict and slows down its arms supplies to Ukraine.
According to two sources, who spoke to Bloomberg on condition of anonymity due to the delicate nature of the matter, Russia stands to benefit from the war between Israel and Hamas. The sources told Bloomberg that the conflict could divert US and European attention away from the war in Ukraine, even though Russia is worried about its escalation.
However, if Hezbollah joins the Israel-Hamas war, it may complicate things for everyone. It may force the US to get directly involved in the war and then no one knows how the conflict will unfold. So, a limited Israel-Hamas war is surely likely to benefit Russia and Putin in the short term but a wider regional conflict could turn out to be a black swan event with uncertain outcomes.
Watch Vladimir Putin speaks to Netanyahu over Israel-Hamas War after 11 days, promises measures to prevent escalation
