Chatham House: "Rapprochement between Russia and Belarus may pose a threat to Europe"

The British think tank Chatham House writes about the rapprochement between Russia and Belarus, which may pose a threat to Europe. The Russian Federation announced the creation of a joint air defense system with Belarus. If this project is implemented, NATO and the West will be forced  to retreat in the international political and strategical arena, giving way to Moscow.

The idea of ​a joint Russian-Belorussian air defense system was born in 2009, and before that such statements had been made with regard to Kazakhstan. Even despite the fact that such a move could be a response to the recent visit of the US Department of Defense’s representative to Minsk, it had been planned much earlier. However, against the background of the current situation in the world, every new agreement has an additional significance. Any rapprochement between Moscow and Minsk is regarded by the West as a potential threat.

President Lukashenko emphasizes strongly that Belarus is a neutral state, which interferes neither in local, nor in international conflicts. That is why Minsk became the venue for the talks on the settlement of the Ukrainian crisis. Lukashenko's neutrality in foreign policy makes Belarus more attractive for both the EU and the USA. However, at this stage the state leans towards an alliance with Russia. This is confirmed by the military cooperation between the two countries and both the economic and strategic partnership between the states, which has existed for 20 years already.

There is a possibility that a joint military organization of the allied states will be created this year, however, Belarus has not commented on this yet. If the country's leadership takes such a decision, the spectrum of the action of the Russian air defense systems will be increased greatly and will reach the airspace of the NATO countries. Perhaps it will be another step towards the restoration of Russia's leading position in the world.

The international edition of Al Monitor writes about the reasons why Israel does not comment on the conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh. Azerbaijan and Israel have been strategic allies for a long time. However, after the escalation of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Israel is in no hurry to help.

Despite the escalation of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, the international community believes that to maintain the status quo is the most appropriate thing in this situation. Europe wants to receive Azerbaijani oil and gas, but does not make any effort to promote diplomatic negotiations aimed at preventing confrontation. The existing status quo has been challenged for the first time in 22 years, but, in fact, only Russia is taking steps to resolve the conflict.

The relations between Azerbaijan and Israel have a strong geopolitical basis. Azerbaijan pays special attention to preserve its status as a secular state. The Baku authorities also try to maintain a cautious policy of neutrality in relation to other states of the Middle East region. In addition, there is no such thing as anti-Semitism in Azerbaijan, unlike many other countries in the world. In turn, the vast Azerbaijani community living in Israel plays an important role in maintaining good relations between the two countries.

It would seem that Israel has all the diplomatic means to help resolve the conflict. After all, Israel returned the Sinai Peninsula in exchange for peace with Egypt. So why does the Israeli government not support Azerbaijan as its important ally? The reason for Tel Aviv’s position is that this conflict is similar to the one that exists between Israel and Palestine, and the preservation of the status quo is the only position that can be taken by the Israeli leadership currently in regard to the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh, so as not to lose its position in the Middle East.