Russia-Middle East

Russia-Middle East

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov delivers a speech at a Russian society Znanie (Knowledge) event in Moscow, Russia May 17, 2022. Russian Foreign Ministry/Handout via REUTERS

Russia's Lavrov to meet with GCC ministers in Riyadh on Wednesday

FILE Photo: Syrian President Bashar Assad, left, speaks to Russian President Vladimir Putin during their meeting in Damascus, Syria, Jan. 7, 2020. Russia's invasion of Ukraine has brought up deep divisions in the Middle East. While American influence has waned, Russia has made powerful friends, from Shiite militias in Iraq, to Lebanon’s Hezbollah group, to Houthi rebels in Yemen. Largely because of his Syria military intervention, they see Putin as a steady, reliable partner who unlike the Americans does not drop his allies. Alexei Druzhinin, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP

Ukraine war highlights internal divides in Mideast nations