Kremlin endorses Hamas

On 09 October, Chechen President Kadyrov expressed support for Palestine, accused Israel of occupying Palestinian territories and suggested that Chechen military units should be deployed in the conflict zone between the Gaza Strip and Israel. Such rhetoric, voiced on the third day after the start of the armed confrontation between Hamas and Israel, is a reflection of the Kremlin's official position. Russia is interested in the emergence of a large-scale conflict in the Middle East and the weakening of Israel, which also meets the interests of Russia's closest ally, Iran.

Russia has not yet recognised Hamas as a terrorist organisation and maintains diplomatic relations with it. In particular, from 2015 to 2020 there were 7 official meetings at the level of the foreign ministers of the Gaza Strip and the Russian Federation. There are reports of regular deliveries of Russian weapons, particularly ATGMs for the needs of the Palestinians. In 2011, militants used such weapons to hit a school bus in Israel. The renewed fighting between Hamas and the IDF is favourable to Russia: Putin is interested in starting a large-scale conflict in the Middle East. Given the socio-political specifics of this region, it is not hard to guess that in case of further escalation hundreds of thousands of refugees will head for the EU countries. More than 140,000 refugees from the Gaza Strip have already been recorded, and this figure will rapidly increase. The deaths of hundreds of Israeli civilians are also favourable to the Kremlin, which wants to weaken Israel, a US ally in the Middle East. For the sake of this, Russia openly supports terrorists who kill women and children in Israel.

Risks and threats to the West are increasing rapidly. Putin's Russia and its allies, as well as geopolitical proxies, are amplifying these challenges. The Kremlin's desire to destabilise the West by inciting wars in different parts of the world is doomed to fail. Putin is now attempting to start such a conflict in the Middle East - with tragic consequences for humanity as a whole. Russia and its allies should find themselves in complete international isolation - Kadyrov's words about supporting the actions of Hamas are the best confirmation of Russia's status as a terrorist state.