What do the sources of documents show about the struggle between the USA and the Russian Federation for the Middle East

US partners Egypt and the UAE are cozying up to Moscow, the documents claim, as they question America's commitment, according to newssky.com.ua, with reference to politician.

Part of the skyline of Dubai in the United Arab Emirates is visible. The Biden administration recently called the UAE a hotspot for Russian sanctions evasion. | Kamran Jabreili/AP Photo

Egypt is considering sending tens of thousands of missiles to the Russian Federation. Kremlin spies claim that the Emiratis are their new best friends. And Israel simply does not want to provide serious assistance to Ukraine, which is fighting the Russian invasion.

The claims, contained in a series of leaked US documents that have stunned Washington, underscore the challenge the United States faces in trying to convince Middle Eastern countries to fully support Ukraine in its fight against Russia. This is especially true as the region's leaders express increasing concern that the US is not supporting them.

US officials deny they are abandoning the Middle East, pointing to America's large military presence and strong security ties in the region. But the documents show that many countries in the region are accepting the Russian Federation amid concerns about the emergence of a vacuum in the form of the United States.

"Every country in the Middle East is now asking what it means to be allied with the United States, how much it costs to be allied with the United States, and whether there are ways to complement the relationship with the United States," said John Alterman, a former State Department official under George W. Bush. Jr., who regularly communicates with Middle Eastern officials as part of his work at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

America's Middle Eastern partners have long been concerned about their position in the growing rivalry between Washington and Beijing. Their concern has persisted even under President Joe Biden, who sees the rise of China as the greatest long-term threat to US influence. Recently, China has even brokered a rapprochement between Saudi Arabia and Iran.

But Russia's influence in the Middle East, where it has a military presence in places like Syria, is also significant. And the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine has led to even greater competition between Washington, Beijing and Moscow for support – or at least genuine neutrality – from the countries of the Middle East, which remains a key source of global energy supplies.

One Middle Eastern diplomat said the most frustrating thing about America is its unpredictable domestic politics and the role short-term thinking plays in policymaking. The sharp changes in politics over the past decade -- from President Barack Obama to President Donald Trump and now Biden -- have heightened the sense of uncertainty.

"Your election cycle lasts two years, and the election cycle of the principalities and kingdoms of the Persian Gulf is, in fact, a lifetime," the diplomat noted. As with other interviewees for this article, the diplomat has been kept anonymous so he can speak candidly on a sensitive subject.

The leaked documents show that even Middle Eastern countries, which receive billions of dollars in US security aid, are not ready to follow America unquestioningly.

POLITICO was unable to independently verify the contents of all documents. But the White House does not deny that the packages contain legitimate information, much of which was found on a social networking site popular among gamers.

One of the documents, reported by the Washington Post, states that Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi ordered subordinates to secretly manufacture up to 40 missiles and other weapons for shipment to Russia.

Egypt receives more than $1 billion in military aid from the United States annually. The Egyptian Embassy in Washington did not directly comment on the document, but said in a statement that its position on the war "is based on non-interference in this crisis and the obligation to maintain an equal distance with both sides."

A high-ranking official of the Biden administration stated in an interview that no similar Egyptian agreement with the Russian Federation had taken place. "Except for Iran, there is not a single Middle Eastern country that would supply Russia with weapons for the war in Ukraine, period," the official said.

American officials, however, did not specifically comment on whether Sisi had taken any steps to implement such a plan.

Another document described how Russian intelligence officers boasted that they had persuaded the United Arab Emirates to "work together against US and British intelligence services," according to the AP report. In a statement to AP, the UAE called the allegations involving Russian operatives "categorically false."

Another document mentioning the UAE, seen by POLITICO, describes how the small but wealthy country is negotiating with a Russian firm to build a regional maintenance center for the UAE's weapons systems. The UAE ambassador to Washington did not respond to a request for comment.

The Biden administration recently called the UAE a hot spot for Russian sanctions evasion.

Elizabeth Rosenberg, a senior official at the US Treasury Department, said in early March that “between June and November 2022, UAE companies exported to Russia more than $5 million worth of US-origin goods subject to export controls, including, inter alia, semiconductor devices, some of which can be used on the battlefield."

Some of the leaked documents mention Israel receiving nearly $4 billion a year in American security assistance.

One document outlines ways to convince Israel to provide weapons to Ukraine. One scenario claims that Israel could be persuaded to provide more aid to Ukraine if Russia sends certain key weapons systems to Iran, whose Islamist regime Israel considers a mortal threat.

But it also notes that Israel is trying to balance its ties between the US and Russia, as it needs Russia to look away when Israel bombs Syrian targets linked to Iran.

"Jerusalem is likely to consider the possibility of providing lethal aid under increased US pressure or because of deteriorating ties with Russia as a result of Moscow's actions in Iran or Syria that undermine Israeli interests," the document says.

Despite the long-standing ties, US-Israel relations have faced unusual strain in recent months as the far-right government in Jerusalem tries to push through laws that many Israelis say will undermine their democracy.

But the Biden administration's approach to the Middle East is largely based on maintaining good relations with Israel and strengthening economic, diplomatic and other ties between Israel and its Arab neighbors.

It is hoped that such "strategic integration" will reduce the risk of violence in the region. That would give Washington respite to focus on more than just the Middle East, although the Biden administration has not said that is its goal.

The US is also pushing for an end to the war in Yemen, which is a proxy fight between Iran and Saudi Arabia. Reassurance in Yemen, where violence has declined significantly over the past year, is one reason the United States has expressed little concern about a Chinese-brokered deal to restore diplomatic ties between Saudi Arabia and Iran.

While Iran sided with Russia in the war – even sending it drones to attack Ukrainians – the Saudis took a more ambiguous position. Riyadh is trying to maintain warm relations with Russian leader Vladimir Putin and has been reluctant to take certain steps in the oil sector that could lower prices, angering Washington.

A representative of the White House National Security Council, however, noted that Saudi Arabia has pledged to provide Ukraine with hundreds of millions of dollars in humanitarian aid, including funding for oil supplies. "The Saudis are helping to keep the lights on and the operation of critical functions in Ukraine," the spokesman said.

A senior administration official also pointed to other recent U.S.-backed diplomatic breakthroughs in the Middle East, such as a naval agreement with Lebanon and Israel; new infrastructure links between Jordan, Iraq and the Arab countries of the Persian Gulf; and, more recently, the restoration of diplomatic ties between Bahrain and Qatar.

While many Middle Eastern countries have voted in favor of United Nations resolutions condemning the Russian invasion, they have largely avoided imposing sanctions on the Kremlin or severely limiting relations with Moscow.

Many also want to maintain good relations with Beijing, whose interest in the region is largely driven by business and which has diplomatically – if not yet openly militarily – sided with Russia against Ukraine.

Biden often presented the Russian Federation's war against Ukraine as a battle between autocracy and democracy. But some of the countries closest to the US in the Middle East are autocracies, and their leaders' priority is to stay in power rather than promote democracy.

If maintaining power requires making more friends in Beijing and Moscow, Middle Eastern leaders are likely to do just that.

"Many of these leaders have some ideological affinity with Russia and China -- they probably see the world the way those rulers do, not the way any American leader does," said Amy Hawthorne, an analyst at the Democracy Project at Middle East.