Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov attends a meeting of Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov (not pictured) with his counterparts of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) member states and the GCC secretary general in Moscow on July 10, 2023. NATALIA KOLESNIKOVA/Pool via REUTERS/File photo Acquire Licensing RightsOct 19 (Reuters) - Russia said on Thursday it was coordinating its policy in the Middle East and North Africa with China, an increasingly close ally that President Vladimir Putin visited this week. Russia said Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov had held talks in Doha with Zhai Jun, China's special envoy for the Middle East, in which they exchanged views on the conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas group that runs the Gaza Strip. Russia sees itself as a potential broker between Israel and Hamas, which triggered the current crisis with a surprise assault on Oct. 7 that killed 1,400 people. Israel has responded with aerial bombardments that Gaza authorities say have killed more than 3,500 Palestinians and left more than 12,000 wounded.

Source: The North Africa Journal October 19, 2023 19:12 UTC