Soviet-Maghribi Relations in the 1980s

Abstract

There is little indication that the Soviet Union sees North Africa as much of a region. The term ‘Maghrib’ or ‘Arab Maghrib’ is used in Soviet Arabic broadcasts since it is part of the Arabic language, but it is scarcely used in Russian writings and speeches. The Maghrib is seen as part of the regions to which it belongs — the Arab world, Africa, the Mediterranean, and the newly independent formerly colonised developing world, and it is referred to in these terms in Soviet discussions. On the other hand, it is composed of four very different countries, each with its own brand of bilateral relations with the Soviet Union. It is this bilateralism which is dominant, and between it and the broader worlds to which the four countries belong, North Africa as a sub-region loses its significance in Soviet eyes.