About us
Russia is situated rather far from the Middle East, but in the virtual world the distance disappears: the on-line format puts relations between these countries under a brighter light. If one looks at these relations in an objective, unbiased way, in other words, from a position of correctly understood interests of his country, solutions to problems can also be made clearer and more comprehendible. Our site will express the interests of Russia - hopefully - understood correctly. Our will include the leading Russian-Middle East experts. They will ensure that our editorial policy does not stray from our declared goals of objectivity, balance, civility, seriousness, and depth.
The problems between Russia and the Middle East region are increasing in number. The Arabs - the radicals and the moderates alike - complain bitterly: The Israelis, on the other hand, are full of joy: . The Russian diplomats reply to both: . Russian armaments manufacturers and oil companies are also ready to increase cooperation with the region's countries and are only waiting for their counterparts' final responses.
Russia is not the USSR. The Cold War with the West is far behind us. What then are our real interests in the Middle East? What are the interests of the region's countries in Russia? How can we harmonize these interests? One of the most important tasks of project MIDEAST.RU is to try to find answers to these questions. The editorial board of MIDEAST.RU along with the members of the Council of Experts will be responsible for accomplishing these tasks. The Council of Experts shall consist of the most respected political scientists, diplomats, and politicians who have dedicated decades of their lives to the Middle East issues. Opinions of our site's visitors will also be carefully considered.
We are not going to chase after the of the hour. We are not going to compete with either the electronic media, or with our friends in the web-based news outlets. Our product is different: namely it is a serious and comprehensive analysis of the most important issues regarding relations between Russia and certain Middle Eastern countries. The key term here is . Both the selection of events to be covered and the approach to interpreting them are going to be put through the prism of Russian interests in the region.
We are confident that materials presented on our site will prove to be solid and competent, regardless of the author's personal opinions. Even in the you will not find any attempts of digging up dirt on politicians. Very few publications, print or electronic, can nowadays avoid covering these kinds of stories. In this sense our visitors might be slightly bored unless they can be entertained by materials covered in . This page will talk about some unique social experiments in Middle Eastern countries, human interest stories, local events, etc.
Frankly speaking, our target audience is not an ordinary reader-visitor. We hope to attract people who are interested in international relations, who are aware of the global processes and events, and who wish to get more thoroughly familiar with the developments in the Middle East. Even though this region is geographically far from Russia, the problems of the Middle East are not so much different from our own.
Dr. Alexander SHUMILIN, founder and editor-in-chief of MidEast.RU
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