Great powers can be drawn into regional conflict even without deliberate intent.

Evidence

At some future time the Middle East may again be threatened by a new domination from outside; perhaps by a resurgent Russia, perhaps by a superpower China. Indeed, if the various governments and peoples of the Middle East continue in their present self-destructive way, the neighboring greater powers may be drawn, even without deliberate purpose, into the politics of the region. — Bernard Lewis, From Babel to Dragomans, 1680

Categorization

• QUESTION: Written pre-2022 — how does this prediction of a ‘resurgent Russia’ in the Middle East look today after the Syria intervention? Worth checking the book’s publication date.
• XREF: connects to: NATO’s consultative machinery proved valuable even in a Gulf conflict outside its traditional area. — Robert B. McCalla, NATO’s persistence after the cold war, 131