Ukrainian President Zelensky Seeks Arab Support Against Russian Aggression

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has made a series of foreign visits in recent weeks to bolster diplomatic support for Kiev’s fight against Russian aggression. In an unannounced visit last week, he arrived in the Saudi city of Jeddah to attend the Arab League summit and try to expand support for his Western partners.

Since Russia invaded Ukraine 15 months ago, Kiev has failed to secure significant support from Arab states, which have largely remained neutral. Saudi Arabia and other Gulf oil producers maintain friendly relations with the Kremlin.

While most Arab governments have voted at the United Nations to condemn Moscow’s invasion, they, like much of the global South, have generally avoided taking sides.

Most Arab League members have called for a diplomatic solution to the crisis, but none have taken any action against Russia that could anger Moscow, such as economic sanctions.

For the most part, Arab officials see the war as a European crisis to be dealt with by the West and Russia itself. Saudi Arabia and other Arab countries are more concerned with conflict and instability within the Arab world, such as what is happening in Sudan, Syria, Yemen, Libya, and Israel and Palestine, than the war in Ukraine.

“A rare feat”

In a speech to the Arab League, Zelenskiy accused some of its members of deciding to “turn a blind eye” to Russia’s war on Ukraine, while also expressing his belief that “in unity we can pull people out of the cages of Russian prisons.” rescued from it.”

Joseph A Kéchichian, a senior fellow at the King Faisal Center for Academic and Islamic Studies in Riyadh, told Al Jazeera that “independent Arab commentators were impressed by the Ukrainian president’s bold statement, especially when he called on Arabs to ‘reflecting on their relationship with Russia’.”

Ketchikian called it a “rare feat” during which Zelensky promised a higher level of Arab-Ukrainian cooperation in the future. Over the years, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and other Gulf countries have maintained important ties with Ukraine in various fields, such as wheat imports, energy, non-oil trade and tourism.

In 2023, Saudi Arabia announced $400 million in aid to Ukraine, including a $300 million grant for oil derivatives.

Zelensky took the opportunity to thank Riyadh for its role in arranging a political prisoner exchange with Russia in September, and the Ukrainian head of state invited Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to Kiev.

Zelensky appealed to his audience at the Arab League summit in the same way he addressed the plight of Muslim minorities in Russian-occupied Crimea at the Doha Forum in March 2022.

He again focused on Ukrainian Muslims in Crimea, seeking to connect his country’s struggles to broader Islamic sensitivities. Crimea is the ancestral homeland of the Crimean Tatars, a Sunni Muslim Turkic ethnic group.

Describing Ukraine’s resistance to Russian aggression as a struggle against “occupation” and “colonizers” in pursuit of “justice,” Zelensky used language more suited to Arabs and audiences in the global South.

Soon, however, some commentators on social media criticized Zelensky for not mentioning Israel’s occupation of Palestine in his speech at the Arab League summit.

It was unclear whether Zelensky’s speech would change the stance of any Arab country on the conflict in Ukraine. Some experts see the change in tack as somewhat dubious, given the geopolitical realities of a multipolar world, with Riyadh and other Arab capitals increasingly valuing their expanding partnership with Moscow.

“I think this is really a very good opportunity for Zelensky to draw his eyes to Ukraine,” said Caroline Rose, a senior analyst and director of the Power Vacuum Project at the New Line Institute for Strategy and Policy. on the ongoing fight against Russian interference.”

“Whether it will work, I’m not sure, especially given Saudi Arabia’s recent tendency to align itself with other major powers outside the West, especially China and Russia,” she said.

Important political images in Saudi Arabia

Hosting the Ukrainian leader is also an attempt to avoid Western criticism of Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states, experts say.

Some U.S. officials have accused Riyadh of helping finance Russia’s war on Ukraine as oil prices soared amid Saudi crude production cuts. Saudi-led OPEC’s cooperation with Russia has been heavily criticized by many in Washington.

Having Zelensky address the Arab League must be understood as part of an effort by Saudi Arabia and the GCC to strengthen the Arab balance between Moscow and Kiev.

On May 19, Mohammed bin Salman revived his proposal to mediate between Ukraine and Russia.

“We reaffirm Saudi Arabia’s readiness to continue to mediate between Russia and Ukraine and to support all international efforts to find a political solution to the crisis in a way that contributes to security,” the crown prince said.

Experts point out that there is also the Syrian factor.

Ross said, “Inviting Zelensky helps moderate some of the other contentious elements of the summit, such as the invitation of (Syrian President) Bashar al-Assad. In the context of normalization, this is of course extremely sensitive. .”

The West has expressed opposition to the Arab government’s rapprochement with Damascus, citing human rights violations and the lack of a political solution to the Syrian conflict.

Saudi diplomacy ramps up

With Mohammed bin Salman at the helm, Saudi Arabia is increasingly keen to position Riyadh as a leader in the Arab world and a diplomatic heavyweight on the international stage.

Saudi Arabia this year entered a new era of détente with arch-rival Iran, a peace deal with Houthi rebels in Yemen and reconciliation with the Syrian government. The country has opted for more diplomatic engagement and less confrontation in the kingdom’s foreign policy. Riyadh also played a leading diplomatic role in the conflict in Sudan that erupted last month.

Although Mohammed bin Salman’s alleged involvement in the 2018 killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul left him relatively isolated on the international stage, he entered the post-Khashoggi campaign in 2022. recovery period.

The situation in Ukraine has allowed Saudi leaders to emphasize Riyadh’s role in helping European countries meet their energy challenges by diverting more crude to those countries.

In the process, Mohammed bin Salman has clearly gained more confidence, which is reflected in his increasingly assertive foreign policy decisions at the regional and international levels. The extent to which Mohammed bin Salman has forged closer ties with China and Russia, Washington’s top geopolitical rivals and foes, and has taken steps to pull the Syrian government out of the diplomatic wilderness speaks volumes for this hard-line attitude. foreign policy.

Patrick Theros, the former US ambassador to Qatar, told Al Jazeera that this month’s Arab League summit should strengthen de facto ruler Saudi Arabia’s “influence in the region” and “enhance the status of Mohammed bin Salman.” Credentials of Leaders in the Arab World”.