Syria barely exists as a state, but Russia is keen to maintain calm there to help Assad keep control, while Iran, already overstretched, does not seem keen on an all-out confrontation with Israel.
Israel's military says meeting with senior Russian officers discussed Lebanon and Syria
Stability in the region – especially in Syria, Lebanon and even Iraq – require that Israel and Russia work closely together.
Netanyahu and Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman have insisted that relations with Moscow are on track.
Israel has insisted that it notified Moscow of its movements and has blamed Syria for the downed plane.
On September 17, Syrian air defenses accidentally shot down a Russian surveillance aircraft while retaliating against Israeli airplanes attacking Iranian assets, killing 15 Russian airmen on board.
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“We hope the cooperation between Russia and Israel to stop the terror and Iran will continue, and that Israel will continue to do everything to ensure that the terror does not reach its gates."
If the current state of relations between the two countries continues to deteriorate, Russia will have no reason to keep the Iranians away from the Golan Heights.
This will be the fifth time since Trump took office in January 2017 that Netanyahu will meet with the US president. They last met in Washington in March.
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