WHEN THE MIDDLE EAST HEATS UP, RUSSIA JUST GAINS GEOPOLITICAL BREATHING SPACE
📌 OPENING – THE PARADOX OF CONFLICT Conventional wisdom holds that war and instability are bad for everyone. They destroy infrastructure, displace populations, create humanitarian crises, and disrupt global trade. And this conventional wisdom is largely correct — for the countries directly involved in the conflict. But for countries watching from the outside, particularly those with strategic patience and a willingness to exploit chaos, conflict can be an opportunity. Russia is such a country. There is a paradox at the heart of Russia's Middle East strategy: when the Middle East heats up, Russia gains geopolitical breathing space. Not because Russia wants war or enjoys suffering — but because every crisis that captures Western attention is a crisis that gives Russia room to maneuver elsewhere. This is the eighth article in Cakranegara News' 15-part series #RUSSIANFOOTPRINT. We have documented Russia's silent waiting (Article 1), its chessboard rearrangement (Article 2), it...