From late 1944, until 1948 and even later, Joseph Stalin adopted a pro-Zionist foreign policy, apparently believing that the new country would turn socialist (as the country had been led by left-wing governments for several decades) and would speed the decline of British influence in the Middle East.[5]
The Soviet government was very cautious about the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) (founded in 1964) and the Fatah party (founded in 1958) during the 1960s. The Soviet government was unhappy about the first two PLO leaders. Nevertheless, the Soviet Union established some contact with the PLO leadership in 1964; in 1965 they established contacts with the General Union of Palestinian Students and the General Union of Palestinian Women. Soon after, in 1969 Yasser Arafat became a chairman of the PLO. Consequently the diplomatic connections with sufficient political reach were instituted and thereafter it became clear in the West that Arafat accounted for an essential undercover operative for the KGB for years to come.[6][7]
By the 1970s, with the loss of Soviet influence in Egypt, Russia sought better relations with Palestinian militants and Soviet arms and training were provided to militant groups.
The KGB was responsible for arming and training most of the militant groups. In fact, it was the KGB which decided which groups should receive the money and weapons. By 1972 the Soviets had declared the Palestinian movement the vanguard of the Arab liberation movement.[8] In the summer of 1974 a PLO embassy was opened in Moscow.[9] During this time Yasser Arafat had addressed the United Nations and soon the PLO was granted observer status at the UN in 1974. In 1975, the Soviet Union sponsored and voted in support of the UN General Assembly Resolution 3379 which equated Zionism with racism but reversed this position when they both sponsored and voted for Resolution 4686 in 1991.
In March 1985, Mikhail Gorbachev assumed power and he started his programs of glasnost and perestroika which resulted in many changes. The Soviet Union began to reduce its support for Third World and other leftist guerrilla movements and urged them to embrace reconciliation. USSR also encouraged (albeit unsuccessfully) Yasser Arafat and the PLO to recognize Israel before the Palestinian Declaration of Independence on November 15, 1988 in Algiers, Algeria.
During and after the dissolution of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s, Russia began to improve its relations with Israel, which had been cut off in the aftermath of the Six-Day War.
During the Gulf War in early 1991, many elements of the PLO along with Arafat had supported Saddam. The diplomatic isolation resulting from this caused the Soviet Union to scale back support for the PLO. The Soviet Union itself was disbanded in December 1991, a few months after the August Coup. The PLO had been sympathetic to the coup plotters, greatly angering Gorbachev and the Soviet leaders.[citation needed] This caused the Soviet government to abandon its support for the PLO. As a result, the PLO began peace talks with Israel in 1991. These events, coupled with the growing Islamist trend in Palestinian society and militancy, weakened the pro-Russian Palestinian militant groups, most of whom had taken on a hard Marxist–Leninist line.
After the fall of the Soviet Union, the newly created Russian Federation continued the policy of supporting the militants albeit in a somewhat limited fashion.
With his accession after Arafat’s death in 2004, Mahmoud Abbas cultivated connections to Russia. Underscoring these, Abbas earned his degree at the Patrice Lumumba University in Moscow where he had earned his Candidate of Sciences degree[11] (the Soviet equivalent of a PhD). Abbas has continued to visit Russia and has met with Russian leaders on several occasions.
In March 2006, after Hamas’ win in the Palestinian elections earlier that year, Russian-Hamas talks began, as RussianForeign MinisterSergei Lavrov met with Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal to discuss the future of the Israeli–Palestinian peace process. (Hamas had won a majority of seats in the Palestinian National Authority Legislative Council). Prior to the meeting, in an interview on February 10, 2006, Russian President Vladimir Putin, according to Kommersant journalist Andrey Kolesnikov and a Spanish parliament member, said that he does not consider Hamas a freedom fighter organization.[12] This is despite Hamas’ charter emphasizing jihad. During the talks in March 2006, Lavrov called on Hamas to comply with the earlier commitments signed by the PLO, and he reiterated those requirements. Hamas promised to respect "the authority and competencies" of Abbas.[13] In an interview in the Austrian daily Kurier, senior Hamas official Aziz Dweik answered on the question if a two-state solution was feasible: "If Israel changes its attitudes toward Palestinians, if it does so much as soften its occupation practice, everything would change. Israel has to do the first step."[13] On March 7, 2006 Russia expressed hope that Hamas would consider supporting the Roadmap for peace and the peace plan proposed by Saudi Arabia."[14] The invitation and the talks caused controversy regarding Russia changing its views towards the Israeli–Palestinian conflict. This was questioned by commentators in the United States especially among the neoconservatives.[citation needed]
Russia was critical of the Gaza War (2008–09) and condemned Israeli actions.[15][16] In addition to 60 tons of aid consisting of tents, medicines, and foods, President Medvedev ordered extra humanitarian aid to be sent to the Palestinians.[17][18] Russia continues to support the creation of a Palestinian State to achieve lasting peace in the Middle East. [citation needed]
Palestine has separate governments in the Gaza Strip (Hamas) and the West Bank (Fatah) after a brief civil war in 2007. After a meeting between the Foreign Minister of Russia Sergei Lavrov and the Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki (Fatah) on December 9, 2009, both Russia and Palestine have said that their relations are close and friendly and that Russia will continue to assist Palestine in all fields.[19] On January 26, 2010, Mahmoud Abbas met with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev to discuss the situation in the Middle East. He said that while some progress has been made on peace, it is still not solved yet. President Medvedev said that he hopes to use Russia's influence to solve the Middle East conflict. He also mentioned the long-standing, friendly and deep-rooted ties between both Russia and Palestine.[20] On March 19 2010, the Middle East Quartet which was composed of the European Union, Russia, the United States, and the United Nations called for a resumption of peace talks between both Israel and Palestine. The Quartet also called for Israel to freeze settlement construction and resume peace talks with Palestine.[21] After the Gaza flotilla raid on May 31, 2010, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev called for a thorough investigation of the incident and said that, in any case, the deaths of people are irreversible. Prime Minister Vladimir Putin condemned the assault and expressed concern that it was conducted in international waters.[22] On June 8, Putin condemned the acts and called for it to be investigated specially, particularly because it occurred in international waters.[23] In a rare display of unity, the Foreign Ministries of Russia and the EU adopted a joint statement concerning the flotilla attack, which correlates with the UN Security Council activity in the situation.[24]Russia's Foreign Ministry further expressed "condemnation and profound concern" over the incident and called for a full investigation. It stated that the "use of arms against civilians and the detention of the vessels on the high seas without any legal grounds constitute a gross violation of generally accepted international legal norms."[25] The head of the RussianState Duma Foreign Affairs Committee, Konstantin Kosachev, called for an "urgent meeting" of the Middle East Quartet to discuss the incident.[citation needed] On April 28, 2011 after the rival Palestinian factions Fatah and Hamassigned a deal (ultimately unfulfilled) to form a national unity government ahead of the national elections, the Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Alexei Sazonov said that Russia was pleased with the fact that the Palestinians were able to reach an accord and that Russia hoped that with the implementation of the accord there will be hope for peace in the Middle East. He also said that Russia always supports the national aspirations of the Palestinian people.[26]
Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in a meeting in Moscow in 2020.
On November 27, 2011, Russian President Medvedev sent Palestinian President Abbas an official letter of support for Palestinian statehood.[27]
During the November 2012 Operation Pillar of Defense in the Gaza Strip, the Russian Foreign MinisterSergei Lavrov called for end to the violence after a meeting held with Gulf Arab foreign ministers in Riyadh.[28] Foreign Ministry spokesman Alexander Lukashevich said: "The attacks on southern Israel, as well as Israel's disproportionate shelling, are entirely unacceptable. We urge all sides to end the military confrontation immediately and to prevent a new round of bloodshed in the Gaza Strip."[29] Following a telephone conversation between President Putin and Netanyahu, the presidential press service said that "The President of Russia called on the parties to exercise restraint and avoid the path of escalating violence, whose victims include civilians, and to do everything to return the situation to its normal course".[30] On November 29, 2012, Russia voted in favor of UN General Assembly Resolution 67/19 on upgrading Palestine to non-member observer state status in the United Nations.[31] During the 2014 Israel–Gaza conflict, Russian President Vladimir Putin telephoned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urging him to stop the operation in Gaza that “lead[sic] to multiple deaths among civilians." It added that "the conversation was requested by the Israeli side."[32] In a telephone conversation with Israeli Prime MinisterBenjamin Netanyahu on July 23, Russian President Vladimir Putin said further fighting in Gaza will lead to a dramatic deterioration of the humanitarian situation and to more casualties and suffering among the civilian population. Putin stressed that "there is no alternative to ceasefire and a political settlement" and reiterated his readiness to "facilitate mediatory efforts and the implementation of peace initiatives, including within the UN framework".[33] Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Federation Council, in the upper house of the Russian Parliament, Mikhail Margelov, said Russia is ready to facilitate reconciliation between Palestine and Israel. He also said that "It is very important for us that the parties complied with the UN resolutions. Our position remained unchanged: we want the Jewish and Arab peoples to live in peace and accord. We’re ready to facilitate the peace process at the bilateral level and within international organizations. Amid the ground operation in Gaza, the logic of events prevails over political expediency. In Gaza, there are different groups that do not maintain contacts. The situation is not controlled by a single centre. This complicates attempts to find a political solution".[34] On July 25, the Russian Foreign Ministry published a message calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza under Egypt's initiative saying "The events in Gaza arouse growing concern. We condemn the death of innocent people, primarily children, during the attack on the UN school in Beit-Hanoun".[35]
In October 2022, during a meeting with Putin in Kazakhstan, Abbas dismissed the US's role in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and expressed his desire for Russia to play a more central role as mediator, provoking criticism by Washington.[36] A senior Palestinian diplomat told Arab News that Russia "is a great country, friendly and supportive of the rights of the Palestinian people, and seriously supportive of its cause."[37]
Putin condemned the October 2023 Hamas attack on Israel that sparked the 2023 Israel–Hamas war and said Israel had a right to defend itself, but also criticized Israel's response and said Israel should not besiege the Gaza Strip in the way Nazi Germany besieged Leningrad. Putin suggested that Russia could be a mediator in the conflict.[38]
In December 2023, Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that Russia's goals of "demilitarization" and "denazification" in Ukraine were similar to Israel's stated goals of defeating Hamas and extremism in Gaza.[39][40]
The Palestinian National Authority, commonly known as the Palestinian Authority and officially the State of Palestine, is the Fatah-controlled government body that exercises partial civil control over West Bank areas "A" and "B" as a consequence of the 1993–1995 Oslo Accords. The Palestinian Authority controlled the Gaza Strip prior to the Palestinian elections of 2006 and the subsequent Gaza conflict between the Fatah and Hamas parties, when it lost control to Hamas; the PA continues to claim the Gaza Strip, although Hamas exercises de facto control. Since January 2013, the Palestinian Authority has used the name "State of Palestine" on official documents, although the United Nations continues to recognize the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) as the "representative of the Palestinian people".
The Palestine Liberation Organization is a Palestinian nationalist coalition that is internationally recognized as the official representative of the Palestinian people. Founded in 1964, it initially sought to establish an Arab state over the entire territory of the former Mandatory Palestine, advocating the elimination of the State of Israel. However, in 1993, the PLO recognized Israeli sovereignty with the Oslo I Accord, and now only seeks Arab statehood in the Palestinian territories that have been militarily occupied by Israel since the 1967 Arab–Israeli War.
Yasser Arafat was a Palestinian political leader. He was chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) from 1969 to 2004 and president of the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) from 1994 to 2004. Ideologically an Arab nationalist and a socialist, Arafat was a founding member of the Fatah political party, which he led from 1959 until 2004.
The history of the State of Palestine describes the creation and evolution of the State of Palestine in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
Mahmoud Abbas, also known by the kunya Abu Mazen, is the president of the State of Palestine and the Palestinian National Authority (PNA). He has been the chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) since 2004, PNA president since January 2005, and State of Palestine president since May 2005. Abbas is also a member of the Fatah party and was elected chairman in 2009.
The history of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict traces back to the late 19th century when Zionists sought to establish a homeland for the Jewish people in Ottoman-controlled Palestine, a region roughly corresponding to the Land of Israel in Jewish tradition. The Balfour Declaration of 1917, issued by the British government, endorsed the idea of a Jewish homeland in Palestine, which led to an influx of Jewish immigrants to the region. Following World War II and the Holocaust, international pressure mounted for the establishment of a Jewish state in Palestine, leading to the creation of Israel in 1948.
Intermittent discussions are held by various parties and proposals put forward in an attempt to resolve the ongoing Israeli–Palestinian conflict through a peace process. Since the 1970s, there has been a parallel effort made to find terms upon which peace can be agreed to in both the Arab–Israeli conflict and in the Palestinian–Israeli conflict. Notably the Camp David Accords between Egypt and Israel, which included discussions on plans for "Palestinian autonomy", but did not include any Palestinian representatives. The autonomy plan would not be implemented, but its stipulations would to a large extent be represented in the Oslo Accords.
The Palestinian government is the government of the Palestinian Authority or State of Palestine. The Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization (EC) is the highest executive body of the Palestine Liberation Organization and acts as the government. Since June 2007, there have been two separate administrations in Palestine, one in the West Bank and the other in the Gaza Strip. The government on the West Bank was generally recognised as the Palestinian Authority Government. On the other hand, the government in the Gaza Strip claimed to be the legitimate government of the Palestinian Authority. Until June 2014, when the Palestinian Unity Government was formed, the government in the West Bank was the Fatah-dominated Palestinian government of 2013. In the Gaza Strip, the government was the Hamas government of 2012. Following two Fatah–Hamas Agreements in 2014, on 25 September 2014 Hamas agreed to let the PA Government resume control over the Gaza Strip and its border crossings with Egypt and Israel, but that agreement had broken down by June 2015, after President Abbas said the PA government was unable to operate in the Gaza Strip.
Beginning in the mid 2000s, the military and diplomatic corps of the Russian Federation has had various contacts and relations with entities on both sides of the Iran–Israel proxy conflict. This is a component of Russia's broader foreign policy across the entire Middle East region.
The Islamic Republic of Iran officially recognises Palestine as a state. Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of Iran, rejects a two-state solution and implies that Palestine is inseparable, while Iran's former President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad called for a free referendum for the entire Palestinian population, including Arab citizens of Israel, to determine the type of government in the future Palestinian State, while reiterating that establishment of a Palestinian State alongside Israel would "never mean an endorsement of the Israeli occupation".
The State of Israel is represented in the Russian Federation through an embassy in Moscow and a consulate-general in Yekaterinburg. Russia is represented in Israel through an embassy in Tel Aviv and a consulate in Haifa. Russia is a member of the Quartet on the Middle East. For many years, Israel was a haven for Russian Jews. This was especially the case during the aliyah from the Soviet Union in the 1970s and 1990s. Israel and the Soviet Union, Russia's predecessor state, were on opposing sides during the Cold War. However, the relationship between Israel and Russia has improved significantly since the early 2000s, with the election of the more pro-Israel Russian leader Vladimir Putin, and the election of the more pro-Russia Israeli leader Ariel Sharon. Putin has had a close relationship with long-serving Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
China–Palestine relations, also referred to as Sino–Palestinian relations, encompasses the long bilateral relationship between China and Palestine dating back from the early years of the Cold War.
There are no diplomatic relations that exist between Israel and Yemen and relations between the two countries are very tense. Yemen refuses the admission of people with an Israeli passport or any passport with an Israeli stamp, and the country is defined as an "enemy state" by Israeli law. During the 2023 Israel–Hamas war war, the Iran backed Houthi movement in Yemen launched missile attacks against Israel and ships in the Red Sea.
Political relations between the State of Palestine and the United States have been complex and strained since the 1960s. While the U.S. does not recognize the State of Palestine, it recognizes the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) as the legitimate representative entity for the Palestinian people; following the Oslo Accords, it recognized the Palestinian National Authority as the legitimate Palestinian government of the Palestinian territories.
Egypt–Palestine relations are the bilateral relations between the Arab Republic of Egypt and the State of Palestine. Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser was a strong supporter of the Palestinian cause and he favored self-determination for the Palestinians. Although the Egyptian government has maintained a good relationship with Israel since the Camp David Accords, most Egyptians strongly resent Israel, and disapprove of the close relationship between the Israeli and Egyptian governments.
Relations between Indonesia and Palestine have been very close and friendly. Indonesia has refused to recognize the State of Israel until a peace agreement is reached between Israel and the State of Palestine. Indonesia has strongly stood up for the rights and freedoms of the Palestinians and has supported the struggles of the Palestinians.
The alliance between Algeria and Palestine is strong and enduring. Algeria is a supporter of the Middle East peace process and it has no diplomatic relations with Israel.
The Battle of Gaza was a military conflict between Fatah and Hamas that took place in the Gaza Strip from 10 to 15 June 2007. It was a prominent event in the Fatah–Hamas conflict, centered on the struggle for power after Fatah lost the 2006 Palestinian legislative election. The battle resulted in the dissolution of the unity government and the de facto division of the Palestinian territories into two entities: the West Bank governed by the Palestinian National Authority (PNA), and the Gaza Strip governed by Hamas. Hamas fighters took control of the Gaza Strip, while Fatah officials were either taken as prisoners, executed, or expelled. The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights reported that at least 161 people were killed and more than 700 were wounded during the fighting.
A series of attempts to resolve the hostility between Fatah and Hamas have been made since their 2006–2007 conflict and Hamas' subsequent takeover of the Gaza Strip.
Russia has diplomatic relations with the political wing of Hamas, the Palestinian Islamist organization which rules the Gaza Strip. Russia has not designated Hamas as a terrorist organization, though it has condemned Hamas attacks as "terrorism" and has taken a hard line against Islamist terrorism. Russia has also maintained relations with Israel.
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