Hryhoriy Mesezhnikov: I hope that after victory, Israel will reassess its attitude to the Russian-Ukrainian war
25.10.2023
Hryhoriy Mesezhnikov
How can the escalation in the Middle East and the crisis in the US Republican Party affect the situation in Europe, in particular in its central-eastern part? Hryhoriy Mesezhnikov, president of the Institute of Public Affairs in Slovakia, shared his thoughts with Newssky.
What is happening in the Middle East — in Israel, Palestine, and the Gaza Strip — will change a lot in this region. This region is important for the whole world and considering the reaction of important world players — the USA, European countries, and Arab states — this crisis is more important in the global dimension than in the regional one.
Israel has become the object of an attack, not for the first time, but the course of this attack is different, so the consequences will be felt. First and foremost, Israel was created as a state that was supposed to provide a safe place for the Jews of the entire world. The state performed this function successfully, despite the constant threats from Hamas. It is a technologically strong, highly developed country that has always been an advocate and defender of the interests of Jews all over the world. On October 7, the entire structure was blown up, and a paradoxical thing happened: the Jews who were in Israel at that moment were less protected than anywhere else. All ideas about the strength of Israel and its preventive warnings against aggressors were destroyed.
Israel has recovered and is implementing its capabilities, but how this will affect the future of the region that will receive this genocide is difficult to predict at this time. Israel is already responding more harshly than it did according to the approved protocols. On the other hand, Jerusalem’s international allies are more understanding of retaliatory actions because, for such a small country, such cruelty and numerous victims could not fail to have a reflection. The West’s solidarity with Israel is great, even though before that, there were only declarations that Israel had the right to self-defense. This time, it was not possible to remain silent.
The genocidal nature of the Hamas attack, on the one hand, strengthened Western support, and on the other hand, it proved that the citizens of Arab countries not only did not condemn the genocide (the political elites too), but they stood in solidarity with Hamas. These mass demonstrations in defense of the Palestinian population (and, by the way, in European countries as well) are actual support for terrorism. Such rallies can affect the situation in Europe (in Berlin, for example, the police dispersed rallies).
At the same time, the Central European countries stood in solidarity with Jerusalem. The visit of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic, Jan Lipavsky, who was the first to arrive in Israel, was indicative. Although he used to have a somewhat critical stance towards Israel, Czech foreign policy has always been pro-Israel. Ukraine also openly supported Jerusalem. Zelenskyy lobbied for Israel on the international stage. I hope that now the attitude of the Israeli authorities toward the military support of Ukraine will change.
The key issue is Russia’s position. Russia, like the Soviet Union, has always supported the Arab countries. The Soviet Union initiated the Palestinian resistance movement. The entire terrorist line was developed by the KGB: hijacking of planes, bombing. Russia has shown itself to be a worthy successor to the Soviet Union. Israel borders Russia and Syria, and because the Assad regime is a proxy of Russia, there is a Russian military contingent and Russian weapons.
Russia warned Israel that the first Russian soldier killed by Israeli weapons would be considered a declaration of war, and then on the Syrian side, Russia would do what it saw fit with Israel.
For Hamas, the goal is to create a Muslim state in Palestine and expel or kill all Jews.
I hope that after the victory, Israel will reassess its attitude toward the Russian-Ukrainian war. Changes have already begun in the Israeli leadership, and Netanyahu will not last long. And the politicians who will come after him have an adequate perception. In the end, this tragedy that happened in Israel creates the prerequisites for a change in attitude towards Ukraine’s war with Russia. Israel is fighting for existence, and Ukraine, in addition to protecting its country, is fighting the spread of the cancerous tumor of authoritarianism and bandit geopolitical influence.
Maryna Kovalchuk, Newssky’s own correspondent (Slovakia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland), V5 Media project manager, and deputy editor-in-chief, contributed.
