Russia and America might have to set a collaboration in order to stabilize the political situation in Iran and in Syria. With more than 500,000 casualties by the end of 2018,
While the war in Syria is still ongoing, the crisis between Iran and several western countries is taking a new turn as the Islamic Republic tried to stop a British Petroleum tanker from circulating by Ormuz.
Although Moscow and Washington have radical different point of views when it comes to politics, experts agree that their cooperation will be crucial for the Middle Eastern region, both to stabilize relationships with Iran and end the war in Syria.
A cooperation is inevitable
Russia and America have successfully cooperated during the second world war and although their modern history has been bumpier than ever, they might have to work hand in hand to solve the war in Syria, experts confirm.
“By the end of 2018 when the worst of the fighting ended, Syria had suffered more than 500,000 deaths and $400 billion in damage. Half of the population had been forced to flee their homes; more than 5.5 million refugees left Syria and the rest were displaced internally”, wrote ex-IDF Brigadier General Yam Ravne in Bloomberg, earlier this month.
#OpEd What would a Russo-American deal look like? asks Ram Yavne https://t.co/XOsEs43vUC
— The Moscow Times (@MoscowTimes) July 22, 2019
According to the former IDF Brigadier, the first reason is simply that Russian and American intelligence services are the most knowledgable when it comes to terrorism. As the Islamic State has been weakened, but still present in the area, the collaboration could help end IS.
Why they don’t collaborate yet
So many tensions have been rising in the past few months between Russia and the United States. First off, US president Donald Trump and Russian president Vladimir Putin’s relation has deteriorated as the Mueller investigation is ongoing.
Prominent Russian activist Alexei Navalny was hospitalized for an allergic reaction hours after more than 1,000 people were arrested in a protest he backed. https://t.co/LChoKAoIG5 via @WSJ
— ❄️😎❄️ Uncle John is fully vaccinated! (@azmoderate) July 31, 2019
Also, Russia has a long history of not respecting basic human rights, and this week showed another example as main opponent to Putin for the next elections, Alexei Navalny, was poisoned and put back to jail after he was hospitalized.
Thus the collaboration with the Kremlin has become an even more sensitive topic, when it comes to global reputation.
Read on Alvexo: “BP: UK Navy Prevented Iran from Stopping Tanker”
Why it is a win-win scenario
However, this pretty unlikely collaboration could be beneficial for both countries: on one hand, Russia, who shares borders both with Syria and Iran, could benefit from a regional peace and resume business.
On the other hand, the United States could withdraw its troops and resume oil trade, hence benefitting better oil prices for the market. At the moment oil prices have reached $58 per barrel, which is likely to increase as the prices rose up by 1.2% after the Fed cut US interest rates.
According to Yam Ravne, Russia “would receive global and regional recognition for its major role in Syria, something Vladimir Putin is likely to value.”
As for the United States, the main benefit would be at a political level – something that Donald Trump might be seeking too, while the 2020 presidential race has begun. It would also benefit both US and Israeli interests, while deescalating tensions in the region. “The alternative is grim”, the expert concluded.