Netanyahu, Putin exchange New Year greetings amid diplomatic row

The Russian president added that closer ties between the countries will “promote security needs and stability in the Middle East.”

By LAHAV HARKOV
Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (R) (photo credit: MARC ISRAEL SELLEM/THE JERUSALEM POST)
Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (R)
(photo credit: MARC ISRAEL SELLEM/THE JERUSALEM POST)
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Russian President Vladimir Putin had a friendly phone call on Monday in honor of the new year.
The call came after a diplomatic row: Russia’s ambassador accused Israel of being a destabilizing factor in the Middle East in an interview with The Jerusalem Post; the Israeli Foreign Ministry reprimanded him; and, on Friday, Russia’s Foreign Ministry spokeswoman said Israel was being too sensitive.
In a New Year’s letter from Putin to Netanyahu (translated by the Prime Minister’s Office) the Russian president said his country “attaches great importance to our friendly relations with Israel.
“We expect to broaden our cooperation in the upcoming year and continue to foster the relations between the two countries and cooperate in taking care of urgent matters on the regional and global agenda,” Putin wrote.
The Russian president added that closer ties between the countries will “promote security needs and stability in the Middle East.”
The Prime Minister’s Office said the subsequent phone call between the leaders included discussions of the situation in Syria, regional developments and actions necessary to increase stability. The Kremlin readout said they also discussed combating the coronavirus pandemic, and that Putin wished Netanyahu and Israelis a happy belated Hanukkah.
Earlier this month, Russian Ambassador to Israel Anatoly Viktorov said: “The problem in the region is not Iranian activities: It’s a lack of understanding between countries and noncompliance with UN resolutions in the Israel-Arab and Israel-Palestinian conflict.”
He also posited that there is “no proof Hezbollah created the tunnels” from Lebanon crossing into Israel, and that “Israel is attacking Hezbollah; Hezbollah is not attacking Israel.”
Two days later, the Israeli Foreign Ministry summoned Viktorov and reprimanded him for remarks that “did not fit with the reality he had been shown many times.”
On Friday, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said: “We are confused by the overly sensitive reaction to the issues touched upon in the interview of our ambassador to Israel. The position presented in it has been repeatedly communicated to Israeli colleagues on various levels. All statements by the Russian ambassador quoted in the publication are in line with Russia’s well-known position on the Middle East.”


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