The article is devoted to the study of modern Russian Middle Eastern academic literature devoted to the relationship between the Soviet Union and Russia as its legal successor on the one hand and such Arab countries as Yemen, Syria, and Tunisia, on the other. These are quite important countries of the Middle East and North Africa, attention to which of the Russian Middle East policy changed over time. Diplomatic ties as well as cooperation in trade-economic sphere and the historical and cultural ties are analyzed in literature. The author notes that cooperation with the countries of the Middle East and North Africa was an important part of the foreign policy of the Soviet Union, but after the collapse the attention to some partner countries in the region has weakened. At the end of the XX century. Yemen, Syria and Tunisia falled out of the focus of Russia’s Middle East policy, this period witnessed a significant weakening of attention to the studied countries and, therefore, there is a rather scarce historiography on this subject. On the basis of the literature the article identifies the main areas of potential research of relations between countries under analysis as well as some issues that have received insufficient coverage. This study may contribute to the identification of opportunities for further cooperation and potential socio-political risks.