REFLECTION OF THE IRAQI SCENE IN RUSSIAN MEDIA AFTER 2003

Abstract

This research seeks to answer a main question: What is the reflection of the Iraqi scene in the Russian media after 2003? It seeks to achieve a number of goals: revealing the reasons for the Russian position regarding Russia not helping Iraq during the period of the American invasion, highlighting the visits of content makers to Iraq, as well as knowing Iraq’s role in Russian foreign policy, and monitoring the cooperation mechanism mentioned in the Russian speech. Between Russia and Iraq in the field of economy and education. From the perspective of the Russian press, Iraq is seen as an important partner in strengthening Russian influence in the region. The Russian press highlights cooperation in areas such as energy and education, participation in the reconstruction of Iraq after the devastation caused by the wars, as well as military relations between the two countries. Some reports indicate that Iraq considers Russia a relatively neutral party in the region compared to the United States and Iran, opening the way for greater cooperation in the future. Russia, a strong partner and most prominent ally of Iraq before 2003, had a position on Iraq during the period of the American invasion that seemed relatively ambiguous and unclear, despite the great diplomatic efforts made by Russian experts to stop the war weeks before it broke out, especially since the Kremlin government did not go far in opposing Washington. Regarding the Iraqi file, which America later settled without referring to UN Security Council resolutions. Moscow took an uncomfortable position regarding the American invasion of Iraq, and the opinions of columnists in Russian newspapers were divided between a supporter who saw the importance of preserving Russian economic interests after the war while agreeing to implement American plans in Iraq and maintaining the principle of maneuvering in a timely manner if necessary, and an opponent critical of American intervention. In Iraq, the Kremlin warns of dire consequences after the war, such as destruction and chaos, as well as the loss of an important strategic partner in the Middle East Accordingly, the view of the Russian press towards Iraq since 2003 cannot be called negative or positive, because it is built on foundations of a pragmatic rather than ideological nature The Russian press has continued to criticize US policy in Iraq, especially regarding the US withdrawal in 2011. There has been extensive coverage of fears that the withdrawal of US forces will allow the expansion of terrorist groups such as ISIS in Iraq and Syria. The Russian press considered this withdrawal to be another failure of American policy in the Middle East While Russia tried to strengthen its economic and security relations with Iraq to restore its influence in the Middle East region, which witnessed a major transformation after the American invasion. In the first section, the research dealt with the methodological framework of the research, and then the analytical studies in the second section.