Since Hamas’s attack on Israel nearly three weeks ago, Vladimir Putin has been torn between who to back. It took the Russian president several days to address the conflict, and even longer to speak to Israeli premier Benjamin Netanyahu. Now, it increasingly appears that he has made up his mind.

Yesterday afternoon, at the invitation of the Kremlin, a Hamas delegation touched down for talks in Moscow. The visit was not briefed out in advance and was only confirmed by the Russian foreign ministry once news of the meeting began appearing in the Russian state media. The delegation was led by Moussa Abu Marzouk, a senior member of the Palestinian group.

If the Israelis are hoping for a repentant or apologetic Russia, they are likely to be disappointed

Neither Putin, nor his foreign minister Sergei Lavrov, are said to have met the delegation. Instead, Russia was represented by Lavrov’s deputy, Mikhail Bogdanov, who also serves as special presidential representative to the Middle East.

According to an official readout from the foreign ministry, Bogdanov demanded ‘the immediate release of foreign hostages located in the Gaza strip’ as well as the evacuation of Russian citizens and other foreigners from the territory. The readout once again reiterated Putin’s call for the two-state solution to be resumed, and labelled Hamas an ‘Islamic resistance movement’.

In the talks, Bogdanov seemingly failed to make any specific mention of the Russian citizens, believed to number at least two, currently being held hostage in Gaza. Neither did he take the organisation to task on the twenty or so Russian citizens believed to have been killed by Hamas during their initial attack on 7 October. What the tangible outcome of the meeting was remains unclear.

Mikahil Bogdanov (centre) with Moussa Abu Marzouk (right). Credit: Hamas Telegram channel

Unsurprisingly, the Israeli foreign affairs ministry condemned Moscow’s decision to host the Hamas delegation, calling on the Kremlin to ‘immediately expel Hamas terrorists’.

‘Israel views inviting Hamas leaders to Moscow as an undignified move that provides a tailwind to terror and legitimises the atrocities of Hamas terrorists,’ their statement said.

However, if the Israelis are hoping for a repentant or apologetic Russia, they are likely to be disappointed. Just days before the visit by the Hamas delegation, Bogdanov stated that Putin will soon host Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas in Moscow for talks. ‘I can confirm that soon [Abbas] will make an official visit to Moscow, there will be negotiations with [Putin]’.

Putin’s indulgence of Hamas and support for the Palestinian cause is nothing new and predates the current conflict. The Kremlin is in the minority of states which have refused to recognise Hamas as a terrorist organisation and the group has made frequent visits to Moscow over the years. Historically, Putin has also sought to court favourable relations with Israel, trying to foster a position for himself as mediator between the two. He developed a close personal relationship with Netanyahu, and thawed the Soviet Union’s frosty attitude to Israel.

For Netanyahu, though, that could all now hang in the balance. Should Abbas’s visit to Moscow materialise, it will likely be framed by the Kremlin as further mediation efforts on Putin’s behalf to restore peace to the region.

However, as the old adage goes, actions speak louder than words. Conveniently for Putin, Hamas’s cause and Israel’s western, and in particular American, backing plays into his narrative of the west’s supposed attempt to control the global order. Just as he frequently spouts such rhetoric in relation to his invasion of Ukraine, so he has already begun to repeat it in relation to Palestine. If Israel still hopes that Putin has any serious intention of coming to its aid, it shouldn’t hold its breath.