Soviet Policy Towards the Arab-Israeli Conflict 1948-1988

This is a case study of Soviet foreign policy towards a Third World regional conflict over the past 40 years, from the Stalin era to the advent of the Gorbachev era. While dealing at length with Cold War, détente and postdétente phases of Soviet involvement in the ArabIsraeli conflict, some perennial questions relating to the nature and conduct of Soviet foreign policy have been poignantly addressed. The theme of its progressive deradicalization and eventual dedecolonization has been brought into bold relief. There is thus very little evidence to suggest that in this area the USSR has been consistently acting from an ideological grand design. Rather, its diplomacy most often appears to be reactive to events and responsive to opportunities. Soviet policy in this region appears to be conservative, ambivalent, shifting and compromising, rather than an adventurism or overtly revisionist policy. This synoptic but closely reasoned and lucidly written book will provide the reader with deep insights into the interventionist behaviour of a superpower in a Third World regional setting.