The News And Times

  Michael Novakhov's favorite articles Why Russia Is Engaged in a Delicate Balancing Act in the Israel-Hamas War posted at 09:34:42 UTC   via   military.com The Israel-Hamas war  has forced Russia into a delicate balancing act, with Moscow urging a quick end to the fighting without apportioning blame. The careful stand is due to Russia's long ties to Israel, the Palestinians and other regional players, and it reflects the Kremlin's hope to expand its clout in the Middle East by playing peacemaker. Russia also tried to cast the hostilities as a failure of U.S. policy, and it hopes they will be a distraction for Washington and its allies from keeping up  military support for Ukraine . A look at the Kremlin's messaging about the war and its relations with those in the region: What is Russia saying about the war? President Vladimir Putin said the war was rooted in the inability to create a sovereign Palestinian state in line with U.N. resolutions that he called a “gross inj

  Hamas delegation is visiting Moscow - Russian Foreign Ministry posted at 15:39:59 UTC   via   reuters.com MOSCOW, Oct 26 (Reuters) - A delegation from Hamas, the militant Palestinian group that controls Gaza, is currently visiting Moscow, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told a weekly briefing on Thursday, without providing any further details. Russia's state-run RIA news agency, quoting a source from the Palestinian delegation, said senior Hamas member Abu Marzook was among those visiting Moscow. Russia has ties to all key players in the Middle East, including Israel, Iran, the Palestinian Authority and Hamas. Moscow has repeatedly blamed the current crisis on the failure of U.S. diplomacy, and called for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas and the resumption of talks aimed at finding a peace settlement. Separately, Zakharova also said that Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Ali Baghiri Kani was also currently visiting Moscow and had held talks with Russian