As tension rose in the Middle East last week, the Soviet Union must have nervously wondered whether it would once again end up in the position of the bystander who bet heavily on the losing party in a street brawl. Since the Six-Day War of 1967, Moscow has dramatically stepped up its bid for influence in the Arab world. The Soviets are drawn to the region by two traditional aims of Russian geopolitics: access to warm-water ports and security along the country's southern borders. To secure those aims, they have invested $5 billion in...
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