ABSTRACT
Nineteen eighty-six was a mixed year for the Soviet Union in the Middle East. The dilemma posed to Moscow by this situation was that if a confrontation took place, Moscow would have to decide whether to back Libya and thereby risk a confrontation with the United States (US). The state of the international situation in the Mediterranean region is by no means a matter of indifference for the Soviet Union. At the minimum, these ships could provide advance warning to Libya in case of a US attack; Moscow may have felt that the presence of a Soviet vessel in Tripoli harbor would deter such an attack. The main emphasis of his speech was on internal reform, and his foreign policy emphases were on Soviet-American, Soviet-European, and Soviet-Asian relations, in that order. Soviet-Iranian relations had been strained from the time of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeyni's takeover in 1979; Iran had strongly criticized Moscow's occupation of Afghanistan, and had aided the guerrilla forces.
