Putin's Russia in the Middle East

Nizameddin traces the continuity and change in Russia's evolving Middle East policies from the final days of the Soviet Union through the emergence of Vladimir Putin in 1998 and his return to the presidency, for a non-consecutive third term, in 2012. Russia's behavior in the Middle East is reminiscent of Soviet behavior during the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s. As Nizameddin's recent book shows, Russia is not only pursuing its interests in the Middle East, it is actively working with regional actors (Iran and Bashar al-Asad) to subvert Western objectives and interests in the region. Putin hopes to profit at the West's expense, just as he believes the West tried to profit at Russia's expense in the decade that followed the end of the Cold War.