Vasiliev Vladimir Sergeevich – Sc.D. in Economics, Chief Researcher, Institute for USA and Canada Studies RAS
The article traces the evolution of the UK’s foreign policy strategy in the Greater Middle East since its exit from the European Union in 2020. During 2021–2023, up until the events of 7 October 2023, the Middle East had a peripheral place in the UK’s geopolitical priorities. The situation changed dramatically after the outbreak of the Palestinian-Israeli armed conflict, which had and continues to have a significant impact on the domestic political situation in the United Kingdom. British policy in the Greater Middle East is a derivative of the US-British special relationship developed during the Second World War and the post-war period. The article analyses the coincidences and contradictions in the interests of Great Britain and the United States in the Middle East, depending on the balance of political forces in London and Washington. It is emphasized that with the coming to power of the Republican administration of D. Trump in January 2025, a serious rift has emerged in relations between Great Britain and the United States, which objectively pushes London to pursue the traditional neocolonial policy of the first half of the 20th century, aimed at destabilizing the situation in the Middle East and especially in Arab-Israeli relations.
Great Britain geopolitical strategy, Greater Middle East, Israel, Hamas, Conservative Party, Labour Party, J. Biden administration, D. Trump administration, 2024 United Kingdom general elections, foreign policy provocations
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