Putting an end to the "bloodshed" and laying the foundations for a lasting resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict was the ambitious agenda that Sergey Lavrov set himself before receiving Ahmed Aboul Gheit, secretary-general of the Arab League, in Moscow on Monday, October 9. After the consultations, the Russian foreign minister simply reiterated his call for a ceasefire and merely stated that Russia's position was "practically in unison" with that of the Arab League.

"Moscow continues to present itself as a credible intermediary in the negotiations," noted Arkadi Doubnov, a Moscow-based expert on Russian foreign policy. "But it does so almost out of inertia and to accuse the West of sabotaging its efforts. In reality, any prospect of playing that kind of role disappeared on February 24, 2022," with the invasion of Ukraine.

Announced after the start of Hamas' attack on Israel, Aboul Gheit's visit served as a reminder that Russia occupies a privileged position on the Middle Eastern scene: It is one of the few states able to talk to all the players. Moscow is on good terms with Iran and the Sunni Gulf states as well as with Israel, and it maintains direct contacts with Hamas. On Tuesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin was due to welcome Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Chia Al-Soudani to the Kremlin, and the RIA Novosti agency reported "preparations" for a visit by Palestinian Leader Mahmoud Abbas.

Two high-ranking Hamas delegations have been received in Moscow over the past year. The first was in September 2022, led by the organization's leader, Ismail Haniyeh, who held talks with Lavrov, and the second by his second-in-command, Saleh Al-Arouri, in March. On both occasions, the good relations between Putin and Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu helped to mitigate Israel's criticisms.

Russia is securing its place in the regional game by means of a delicate balancing act which, in the face of the extreme brutality of the Hamas attack, is now attracting criticism from both outside and within the country. Russian opinion is overwhelmingly pro-Israeli, often for the simple reason that many Russians have relatives living in Israel.

Already on Saturday, the first reaction of Russian diplomacy seemed to place equal blame on both warring parties. Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov, Putin's special representative for the Middle East, called on "the parties in the conflict to cease fire." During discussions at the UN Security Council the following day, Russia condemned the attacks on civilians but did not name Hamas. According to the Russian embassy in Israel, one Russian citizen has been killed and four taken hostage.

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