The G20 Summit in Turkey, intensification of Russian airstrikes in Syria and a glimmer of hope for an improvement in relations between Russia and the West all made headlines.
Last week was devoted to the G20 Summit in Turkey, mourning for the victims of the terror attacks in France and Egypt, and the search for a joint approach to fighting international terrorism. Despite the clear commonality of the global terrorism problem and the prospects for a joint solution, each of the great powers continues to play its own game.
Results from the G20 Summit in Turkey
On Nov. 15-16 the Turkish city of Antalya turned into the center of world politics as it played host to the G20 Summit. Although the G20 was initially an economic platform, with politics supposedly the preserve of the G8, the latter’s reversion to the G7 format means that it lacks some of its former authority to take legitimate political decisions on a global scale. So the burden has now passed to the G20.
In the wake of the recent attacks in Cairo, Beirut and Paris and the explosion on board the Russian airliner, the main topic of the forum in Antalya was international terrorism. All eyes were on Russian president Vladimir Putin, who is leading the fight.
U.S. newspaper The Wall Street Journal, which can hardly be accused of being a Kremlin sympathizer, noted that the Russian leader was “front and central throughout the whole summit in Turkey.” Taking advantage of his privileged position, Putin reiterated his previous call in September at the UN General Assembly for the world to join forces in the fight against the absolute evil that is terrorism.
“The terror attacks in Paris make it absolutely imperative for everyone to put aside all excuses, pretexts and preconditions and focus on creating a truly universal anti-terror front,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said, explaining the Kremlin’s position. But Moscow’s call was not heeded, as Brussels is not prepared either to trust Moscow or to give up dividing terrorists into “good ones” and “bad ones.”
Russia needs its own Operation Wrath of God
On Nov. 20, FSB head Alexander Bortnikov officially stated that the Russian Airbus A321 had been brought down by an on board bomb. Vladimir Putin immediately vowed that all those implicated would be found and destroyed.
The Russian Defense Ministry has been instructed to intensify its operation in Syria. The number of anti-terror sorties has doubled, and terrorist positions near Raqqa have been hit with cruise missiles. It is also possible that the Russian Air Force will strike the militant group known as Wilayat Sinai (which has claimed responsibility for the bombing of the plane), following public consultations with the Egyptian authorities and private consultations with Israel.
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But while the debate on what candidate’s policies and worldview may be more preferable for Russia continues, the overwhelming majority of the Russian political elite and expert community agree upon two things. First, the relationship in the White House is not one hundred percent defined by the person in the Oval Office. Second, since the current crisis between the two states has more profound roots and a long record of mutual grievances the relationship is unlikely to improve--while there’s plenty of potential for its deterioration.
In general, the new bill should not be seen as something out of the ordinary. Republicans, even when they were the minority in the Senate, used to lobby tough resolutions against Russia. Today the Republicans set the agenda in both Houses, and this fact is to be taken into consideration by Obama.
In addition to Russian military airstrikes, Syrian President Assad’s visit to Moscow and the continuing Normandy talks over Ukraine dominated the Russian foreign policy agenda in October. October marked the first month of the Russian airstrikes in Syria against terrorist targets and also saw positive developments in the diplomatic process around Ukraine and Syria. Given these two ongoing international issues, some other important foreign policy events have been overshadowed.
Despite much media talk before the summit about Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott's promise to "shirtfront" (knock down) the Russian president over Moscow's alleged role in the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 over eastern Ukraine in July, Putin had positive comments about the summit in Brisbane.
The Foreign Policy Analysis Group is a strategic intelligence and research organization based in Moscow, Russia. We analize and advise on foreign policy and international affairs since 2014 with an aim to produce the most accurate analysis of current affairs in international relations from non-Western perspective.
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