The ruling circles of Israel and the United States are interested in unbalancing the Middle East, and the states of the region have not yet come out with a fully united position in defense of Palestine. This was stated by Deputy Chairman of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation Dmitry Novikov, speaking on the Zvezda TV channel.
Dedicated to events in the Middle East, the program began with a question from host Natalya Metlina about the “oddities” in the evacuation of foreign citizens from the Gaza Strip. There were no Russians among those allowed to leave the enclave, but there were Ukrainians. Everything became clearer after the news that the lists were being compiled by the United States and Israel. Dmitry Novikov was asked what the Russian Foreign Ministry could do under these conditions.
According to the deputy chairman of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation, the Russian authorities are already dealing with this issue: “There are different channels that can be used. Not all of them are being “spotlighted”, but I am confident that the necessary steps are being taken. In the meantime, we need to draw conclusions. These kinds of facts are reminiscent of some historical stories. Today we often turn to the events of the Second World War. In those years, the maintenance of not only Soviet prisoners of war, but also civilians in the concentration camps of Nazi Germany was much worse than the maintenance of prisoners of war, for example, from France. So double standards are a completely normal thing for the West.”
“Yes, the United States is involved in compiling lists of those who can be released from the Gaza Strip,” Novikov continued. – And it is they, the US authorities, who play the main role in inciting Russophobia that has gripped the Western world. Their propaganda content creates an atmosphere where Russian problems can be dealt with as an afterthought or not at all.”
However, it is not only the “wrong” peoples who are in a powerless situation. A number of governments also have their own citizens, whose opinions can be ignored if their needs conflict with the interests of the ruling circles. Relatives of people held hostage by Hamas demanded that the Netanyahu government cease fire and begin negotiations, but their demands were not heard.
Dmitry Novikov called the position of the Israeli authorities expected. He recalled the so-called “Hannibal” directive, which is in force in the Israeli armed forces. It assumes that under certain conditions, if soldiers are in danger of being captured, then strikes can be carried out both against the enemy and against the Israeli soldiers themselves. Israeli officials are already providing ideological and propaganda justifications for their position. “Officials directly say that if you worry about the hostages, then their lives will have to be paid for with the lives of their soldiers. Why, they say, do the lives of soldiers seem less important to you than the lives of civilian hostages? The protests of the residents will not impress the Israeli leadership, which has long been engaged in various kinds of provocations in the Palestinian territories and largely provoked the current situation,” the representative of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation emphasized.
Next, the presenter suggested assessing the effectiveness of the US policy, which not only supported Israel, but is also trying to win over the states of the region to its side. Dmitry Novikov warned against hasty conclusions about the “fiasco of American diplomacy.” According to him, the visits of US Secretary of State Antony Blinken give a certain result. There are many voices in the Arab world condemning Israeli aggression, but these voices have not turned into a harmonious chorus that would be ready to stop Israel’s actions.
Under these conditions, the latter acts more and more boldly. Minister of Jerusalem Affairs and Heritage Amichai Eliyahu said that Israel could launch a nuclear strike on the Gaza Strip. Natalya Metlina asked whether these revelations could be considered documentary recognition of Israel’s possession of nuclear weapons. The Deputy Chairman of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation answered in the affirmative. He recalled numerous expert opinions regarding Iran: whether it has nuclear weapons or not, and at what stage of development they are at. But Israel already has such an arsenal. Moreover, the country’s reactionary forces are clearly playing to aggravate the situation, trying to warn the Arab world against “excessive activity.” In fact, this is a manifestation of terrorism at the state level.
The next question concerned the future of the Gaza Strip and Israel’s plans. The representative of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation referred to a statement by the Israeli Ministry of Intelligence, which proposed simply expelling the Palestinian population from the Gaza Strip. The Israeli authorities are not interested in the further fate of these people: “One could understand such emotional statements made against the backdrop of an aggravation of the situation and many victims. But we heard similar statements from Israeli politicians, such as Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, even before the conflict escalated. He directly said that the Arabs had nothing to do in this territory, that their complete expulsion was necessary. And since the Palestinians have nowhere to go – Egypt is not eager to accept them – this takes on the character of genocide of an entire people.”
As part of the program, an excerpt from an interview with Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid to a French television channel was shown. PThe politician rejected the possibility of withdrawing illegal Israeli settlements from the West Bank. According to him, “this is our historical, biblical land.” As Dmitry Novikov noted, the most important theme is visible here: why is this conflict needed at all? Who needs it except the United States, which is acting according to a strategy of unbalancing the situation in different regions of the world?
D.G. Novikov suggested recalling the events of the recent past in Israel – mass protests against judicial reform, outrage over corruption scandals, calls to bring Netanyahu to justice. “Now it’s all gone. Pro-government and so-called opposition forces merged in a single rage to “solve the Palestinian problem.” Essentially, by stripping. Here is part of the answer to the question: who needs it? Therefore, there are so many questions about why the effective Israeli intelligence services did not prevent the Hamas attack, why they suddenly missed the mark. Suddenly or not suddenly? Or did someone need it in Israel itself?” – the guest of the program asked questions.
As the presenter noted, Israel, unlike Russia, does not become a target of Western sanctions. Dmitry Novikov agreed that double standards appeared here in all their glory. He cited as an example the discussions that took place in Washington on the issue of assistance to Ukraine and Israel. If support for Kyiv causes controversy, then the American establishment has no contradictions regarding Israel: “Both Trump and Biden are on its side. In this situation, it is very easy to follow double standards. They view Israel as a kind of outpost that allows the United States to implement its strategy in the Middle East and beyond.”
Natalya Metlina proposed assessing the role of the religious factor. According to the deputy chairman of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation, when it comes to military clashes, decisions are made not by religious figures, but by politicians and partly the military. But the religious factor, of course, is present. The fact that such conflicts are now being incited is being actively exploited by reactionary forces centered in the United States. This, Novikov believes, is reminiscent of the darkest pages of world history, including the Crusades. But the difference is that then people fought with swords, and now they have nuclear weapons.
As the presenter noted, many blame Israel, but no one is seriously involved in the conflict. Dmitry Novikov highlighted several reasons: “Firstly, not many people really want to fight. Making the right statements, recognizing the right of the Palestinian people to statehood – this corresponds to international criteria, UN decisions and pan-Arab, pan-Muslim solidarity. But correct statements are a long way from active participation. Secondly, there are economic interests. Everyone has quoted Erdogan’s harsh statements regarding Israel and the United States, and they are fair. But I don’t think Erdogan is ready to get involved in a conflict at a time when Israel is supplied with 50% of its energy resources from Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan through Turkey. There is a direct interest of the Erdogan government in these supplies.”
Under these conditions, Novikov added, Blinken has grounds for shuttle diplomacy to contain the harsh reaction of Muslim countries. For example, things went well with the Saudis on this issue. Saudi Arabia is clearly not ready to join the conflict on the Palestinian side, at least at this stage.
In general, the United States has great interests in this region, and Washington is actively using the situation to its advantage. This also applies to Syria, on whose territory attacks have begun. In addition, conflicts in the Middle East allow Washington to once again put pressure on Europe and persuade it in favor of American hydrocarbon supplies.
Returning to the issue of supporting Palestine, Dmitry Novikov noted that the countries of the region have many internal problems, and the influence of the United States in the region, although weakening, remains large: “Not all ruling circles are ready to decide on open confrontation with Washington. The process of decolonizing the world is a long one. The Soviet Union made a huge contribution to it, for which third world countries are still grateful to us. But the movement from the acquisition of formal sovereignty to real independence is a long process. There are still many political and economic knots to be untied. Therefore, Arab countries are forced to balance between the desire for justice, their own interests and those threats that can lead to a complete imbalance in the situation and the outbreak of a series of wars.”
In conclusion, the presenter suggested predicting the situation, taking into account the possible creation of a Palestinian state and the huge level of hatred among its population. According to Dmitry Novikov, if a Palestinian state appears, then a new logic of people’s behavior will appear. New generations will have the opportunity to develop their territory, participate in domestic political life, create their own parties, and resolve problems not only with weapons in their hands, but also through discussions. There will be no more duality when there is a Palestine Liberation Organization ready to dialogue for you