Netanyahu in Meeting with Putin: Israel is Always Ready to Counter Threats from Iran

Benjamin Netanyahu, the Prime Minister of Israel, stated during a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday, February 28, that Israel is constantly prepared to confront "threats posed by Iran and terrorist groups," primarily the "exported ideologies" from Iran that "clearly seek the destruction of Israel." According to the Russian news agency Interfax, Mr. Netanyahu asserted that "neither terrorist regimes nor their mercenaries can destroy Israel." He emphasized that his country stands "with all its strength" alongside the world to "guarantee the future of humanity." Mr. Netanyahu spoke at a ceremony hosted by the Russian President on the occasion of International Holocaust Remembrance Day, commemorating the murder of six million Jews under the Nazi regime. This week coincided with the seventy-third anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz death camp. The Russian President and the Israeli Prime Minister visited an exhibition marking the seventy-fifth anniversary of the uprising of Jews and other prisoners at the Sobibor death camp at the Museum of Judaism and Tolerance in Moscow. Mr. Netanyahu assured that "another Holocaust will not occur." In this context, Israeli media reported that Mr. Netanyahu stated the main lesson from the rise of the Nazis and their subsequent defeat is the importance of "the role of time and power in standing against deadly ideologies." Mr. Putin did not show a direct reaction to Mr. Netanyahu's remarks regarding "Iranian threats" in front of the cameras. The Israeli Prime Minister had previously indicated that he would use the opportunity of his new meeting with the Russian President to warn about the dangers of "Iran's consolidation in the region." He also mentioned before flying to Moscow that "Iran has turned Lebanon into a missile site." The meeting between the Israeli Prime Minister and the Russian President occurred four days after Mr. Netanyahu's meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump, which took place on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, focusing on issues related to Iran and the Palestinians. Last week, Mr. Netanyahu also met with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron at the World Economic Forum, where he called for reforming the global powers' nuclear agreement with Iran according to U.S. President Trump's conditions. Last month, Donald Trump set four conditions for the U.S. to continue its participation in the JCPOA: inspections of all Iranian sites requested by international inspectors, guarantees against approaching nuclear weapons, the permanence of the JCPOA, and restrictions on Iran's long-range missile program; as Mr. Trump stated, long-range missiles and Iran's nuclear weapons program are "inseparable." Meanwhile, according to Israeli media, coinciding with the meeting of Israeli and Russian leaders in Moscow, Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman also warned in a press conference in Tel Aviv about "Iran's strengthening presence in Syria and Lebanon" but added, "we know all the elements present at Iranian missile sites in Syria and Lebanon." Earlier, Colonel Ronen Manlis, spokesperson for the Israeli army, warned in an Arabic note published on Sunday in regional media, including Lebanon, that the consequence of Iran's strengthened presence in Lebanon would be war. The governments of Iran and Lebanon have not responded to the recent statements from Israeli officials and military commanders; however, Iran has always considered its support for Hezbollah in Lebanon a source of pride, and the Lebanese government has emphasized that "there are no Iranian missile manufacturing plants in Lebanon," stating that "Hezbollah is part of the parliament, government, and society of Lebanon."