Russia and the Middle East Under Putin

Bu makalenin amacı Rusya’nın Ortadoğu politikalarına yönelik kapsamlı bir analiz yapmaktır. Boris Yeltsin dönemindeki ilişkileri konu alan kısa bir özetin ardından makale, Putin Hükümeti dönemine odaklanmaktadır. Makale, Putin dönemi Rusya-Ortadoğu ilişkilerini iki kısımda ele almaktadır: 2000-2004 arasında Putin’in yerel gücünü pekiştirdiği dönem ve 2004-2008 arası Rus liderin bölgeye yönelik daha kendinden emin politikalar izlemeye başladığı dönem. Rusya’nın Gürcistan’ı işgalinin Rusya-Ortadoğu ilişkileri üzerindeki etkisi de ayrıca analiz edilmiştir. Makalede Rusya’nın Türkiye, Suriye, Islami Hareketler ve Arap-Israil çatışmasına yönelik politikaları detaylı olarak incelenmiştir. Makale, dört önemli konunun vurgulanmasıyla son bulmaktadır: Öncelikle Yeltsin’in Ortadoğu’dan uzak kaldığı 10 yıllık sürecin ardından Putin, Rusya’nın bu bölgedeki varlığını yeniden inşa etmiştir. İkinci olarak Rusya’nın bölgedeki varlığının ötesinde sorulması gereken asıl soru, Rusya’nın bu bölgede gerçekten ne ölçüde etkili olabildiğidir. Üçüncü olarak; Moskova’nın bölgedeki varlığı güçlendikçe, Rusya’nın bölgedeki çok sayıdaki çatışma arasında hangilerini destekleyeceğine dair açmazı da aynı ölçüde büyümüştür. Son olarak ise Moskova için Ortadoğu’nun ekonomik önemi git gide artmaktadır ve bu nedenle Putin, bölgedeki hemen hemen her ülke ile ekonomik ilişkileri geliştirmeye yönelik politikalar izlemektedir.

Putin Döneminde Rusya ve Ortadoğu

This article aims at analyzing Russia’s foreign policy towards the Middle East in a comprehensive manner. After giving a brief overview of the relations under the leadership of Boris Yeltsin, the article concentrates on the Putin administration. The article looks at Russia’s relations with the Middle East under Putin in two major periods: From 2000 to 2004, when there was a consolidation of Putin’s power domestically and from 2004 to 2008 when the Russian leader pursued a more assertive policy towards the region. The impact of Russian invasion of Georgia on the relations with the Middle East is also analyzed. In the article, Russia’s foreign policy towards Turkey, Iran, Syria, Islamic movements and the Arab-Israeli conflict are studied in detail. The article concludes by highlighting four important points: Firstly, after Yeltsin’s decade of absence from the Middle East, Putin has restored Russia’s presence in the region. Secondly, despite this presence, to what extent Russia has been able to exercise real influence in the region is a real question. Third, as Moscow increased its presence in the Middle East, it has also increased its dilemma of choice as to which side to back in the numerous conflicts that pervade the region. Finally, the Middle East has become of increasing economic importance to Moscow, and Putin has pursued economic relationships with almost all the countries in the region

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