Netanyahu Travels to Moscow for Talks with Putin on 'Iranian Military Presence in Syria'

Benjamin Netanyahu, Prime Minister and Minister of Defense of Israel, traveled to Moscow on Thursday, April 15, for another meeting with Vladimir Putin, President of Russia, focusing on 'Iran's military presence in Syria.' According to Reuters, the Israeli Prime Minister's Office and the Kremlin announced earlier this week, following a phone conversation between Netanyahu and Putin at Israel's request, about the Prime Minister's return to Moscow. Since September 2015, when Russia militarily intervened to help preserve Bashar al-Assad's regime in Syria, Netanyahu has met with the Russian leader at least ten times for 'coordination regarding Israeli operations in Syria.' According to Ynet, Yossi Cohen, head of the Mossad, Meir Ben-Shabbat, National Security Advisor, and Tamir Hayman, head of the Israeli military intelligence, are accompanying Netanyahu on his trip to Moscow. One day before his new trip to Moscow, Netanyahu reiterated his position that if Iran establishes a military presence in Syria, 'the danger to Israel's existence will be greater than that posed by Hamas in Gaza.' He had previously mentioned 'hundreds' of attacks by his country on what he calls 'Iranian targets and Iran's allies in Syria.' In an Israeli airstrike in Aleppo, 'one Iranian and six Iraqis' were killed. Following Netanyahu's two-month-old visit to Moscow, Israel has attacked Syria at least once more. According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, in last month's Israeli attack on the Aleppo area, one Iranian and six others were killed. Iran and Syria emphasize that Iran's military presence during the Syrian civil war is based on legal military agreements between the two 'brotherly' countries and has an 'advisory' nature. However, international reports indicate that the Quds Force of the Revolutionary Guard, under the command of Qassem Soleimani, has apparently moved dozens of kilometers away from the Syrian borders with Israel following pressure from Russia. The Israeli website Ynet considers this a result of an understanding between Netanyahu and Putin. Russia, which cooperates with Iran in Syria, has effectively remained silent in the face of Israeli airstrikes in Syria. Heshmatollah Falahatpisheh, head of the Iranian Parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy Commission, recently stated after a trip to Syria that the air defense systems provided by Russia to Syria 'do not activate during Israeli airstrikes.' Netanyahu's meeting with Putin on Thursday is the first after a major change in U.S. policy regarding Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights, which favors Israel. Donald Trump, the President of the United States, recognized last week the Syrian Golan Heights, which has been occupied by Israel for five decades, as part of Israeli territory. Russia, like many countries and global institutions, has emphasized its strong opposition to the U.S. recognition of Israeli sovereignty over the Golan and still considers the heights part of Syria. Despite these differences, Russia and Israel have multiple common interests; for instance, more than one and a half million of the six million Jews living in Israel are Russian immigrants, and Mr. Putin has always emphasized the need to ensure their security in Israel. Netanyahu's trip to Moscow comes five days before the Israeli parliamentary elections. Israeli media have reported that the main goal of this trip is to present Netanyahu as a 'globally acceptable leader' on the eve of his country's elections. Recent polls in Israel indicate that Netanyahu is likely to remain in the position of Prime Minister for another term of his long premiership, coinciding with Putin's continued leadership in Russia.