Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow Monday to discuss security arrangements between Israeli and Russian forces during the ongoing Syrian civil war, as well as Israeli concerns regarding Iranian expansion into both Syria and Lebanon.
The two leaders held a brief joint press conference before their closed-door meeting. In their comments during the press conference, held in Moscow’s Jewish Museum and Tolerance Center, Prime Minister Netanyahu alluded to International Holocaust Remembrance Day, which was observed worldwide on Saturday, and highlighted the Soviet Union’s casualties during its fight against Nazi Germany during World War II.
"I very much appreciate this invitation and your personal appearance in this place [the Jewish Museum and Tolerance Center], today, which reflects our common struggle against the greatest evil that humanity has known, and the awful price paid by my people, the Jewish people, and the Russian people and the great sacrifice of 20 million Russians alongside our 6 million, and the heroism of the Red Army in achieving victory over the Nazis.”
“We see here this very moving presentation of documents from the Sobibor uprising, in which a Jewish Red Army officer led – against all odds – the successful breakout, the breakout to freedom.”
The Prime Minister then turned to the present day threat posed by radical Islam, saying that “murderous ideologies” must be confronted and defeated.
“I think that the main lesson of the rise of the Nazis and, afterwards, their defeat, is that one needs to take a strong and timely stand against murderous ideologies.”
“This is also our mission today and it is to this end that I want to speak with you, about our common efforts to promote security and stability in our region, and – of course – the cooperation between us, between Russia and Israel.”
While Netanyahu did not mention Iran by name during the press conference, Iran and its involvement in the Syrian civil war and growing influence in Lebanon were dealt with during the subsequent meeting with Putin.
Ahead of his trip to Russia, Netanyahu laid out the agenda for the meeting.
"I will discuss with President Putin Iran's relentless efforts to establish a military presence in Syria, which we oppose and are also taking action against.
"We will also discuss Iran's effort to turn Lebanon into one giant missile site, a site for precision missiles against the State of Israel, which we will not tolerate."
