Russia’s priorities are clear after Netanyahu-Putin call, and Israel isn’t one of them

On Sunday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stepped out of his government’s weekly cabinet meeting to take a nearly hour-long call with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Almost before it had concluded, each side had already published its own version of how the conversation went.

Netanyahu’s office mentioned criticizing Moscow’s alliance with Iran and expressing dissatisfaction with its stance on Israel’s war with Hamas. The issue of the Israeli hostages in Gaza was also discussed.

The Kremlin, meanwhile, highlighted “the catastrophic humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip,” saying that Putin insisted Israel’s military response to the Hamas terror onslaught cannot lead “to such dire consequences for the civilian population.”

As the call took place, Russia’s veteran Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov was speaking at the Doha Forum. Referring to the war in Gaza, he said that Russia “strongly condemned the terrorist attack against Israel on October 7.”

But, he added, “at the same time, we do not believe it is acceptable to use this event for the collective punishment of the millions of Palestinian people with indiscriminate shelling.” READ MORE