Leaning into pro-Palestinian and anti-Western sentiment allowed Russia to score points with global public opinion. But dynamics that initially seemed to benefit Russia quickly became a strategic headache.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov warned on Wednesday that direct U.S. military assistance to Israel could radically destabilise the situation in the Middle East, where an air war between Iran and Israel has raged for six days.

Analysts say the Kremlin is prioritizing its own war against Ukraine, as well as its relations with Gulf nations that don’t want to see a stronger Iran.