Civil unrest is gaining momentum in many countries of the Middle East and North Africa, and there are no signs of it abating any time soon, analysts say.
 
Sergei Karaganov, head of the Department of World Economics and Political Studies at the Russian School of Economics, believes that the situation in the region will get worse.

A wave of popular uprisings has swept across the Middle East and North Africa, leading to the overthrow of deeply entrenched autocratic regimes in Egypt and Tunisia. Large anti-government protests were seen in Algiers, Iraq, Jordan, Morocco and Oman, and demonstrators continue to take to the streets in Yemen. International forces have now intervened in Libya.

While presenting the Valdai Discussion Club’s latest report at a news conference, Karaganov said: “The Persian Gulf has always been a security problem but now the situation in the Middle East is going from bad to worse. I see no signs of rapid improvement. Expect the crisis to deepen and spread.”

According to Karaganov, “Russia and the United States are the only two nations capable of acting as a stabilizing force in the Middle East.”

He says that the Middle East will be on the agenda during the meeting between Russian government officials and U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates in Moscow.

Commenting on Russia’s decision to abstain from the UN Security Council vote to authorize the use of force Libya, Karaganov described the Russian government’s position as “entirely sound.”   
“[Russia] had the option of vetoing the resolution, even if China refused to block it, which would have damaged relations with Europe and provided cover for Gaddafi. The second option was to approve the operation and participate as well. But Russia went for the third option – supporting our friends in need,” Karaganov said.

Sergei Karaganov heads the editorial board of the magazine Russia in Global Affairs. He is also chairman of the Russian Council for Foreign and Defense Policies.

The Valdai Club was established in 2004, and is jointly run by the RIA Novosti news agency and the Russian Council for Foreign and Defense Policies, in association with Russia Profile, Russia in Global Affairs, and The Moscow News. The club gets its name from the Russian town where its first meeting was held.  Its goal is to foster dialogue between Russian and foreign scholars, politicians and journalists and to provide the expert community and the general public with independent, unbiased and fact-based analysis of political, economic and social processes in Russia and the world.

Valdai Club meetings, held both in Russia and abroad, bring together political scientists and analysts from around the world. More than 400 members of the international intellectual community from 35 countries have taken part in the club’s forums since it was founded seven years ago.

Moscow, March 23 - RIA Novosti