A meeting between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Russian president Vladimir Putin has reportedly been canceled amid Russian anger over Israeli actions in Syria.
The two had been scheduled to meet November 11 in Paris during Armistice Day anniversary commemorations, according to the Kan state broadcaster.
Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as they prepare to deliver joint statements after a meeting and a lunch in the Israeli leader’s Jerusalem residence, Monday, June 25, 2012. (AP Photo/Jim Hollander, Pool)
However, France asked that the meeting be canceled and Moscow has protested Israel publicizing the fact that it has continued to carry out strikes in Syria even after the downing of a Russian spy plane by Syrian air defenses in September, according to the report.
There was not immediate confirmation of the Kan reports from Jerusalem or Moscow.
However, other Israeli news outlets reports that Netanyahu was considering canceling the trip to Paris.
A computer simulation released by the Russian Defense Ministry September 23, 2018, purports to show Israeli jets near a Russian reconnaissance plane, in red, off Syria’s coast before it was accidentally shot down by Syria forces responding to the Israeli air strike. (Russian Defense Ministry Press Service via AP)
Russia has blamed Israel, which was carrying out a strike in Syria, for the plane downing incident and bolstered Syria’s air defenses, while reportedly demanding Israel give Moscow more notice before carrying out bombing runs, leading to increased tensions with Jerusalem.
Netanyahu had touted his frequent contacts with Putin as key to keeping a mechanism in place that allowed Israel to carry out bombings in Syria against Hezbollah and Iran.
Israel has signaled it will continue carrying out strikes even with the advanced S-300 air defense system operational in Syria. On Tuesday night, Israel’s Hadashot news carried footage of Israeli planes practicing bombing runs against S-300 batteries, in what some saw as a message to Moscow and Damascus.
On Monday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told Spanish newspaper el Pais that Israel was endangering Russian troops with its strikes in Syria and needed to give Russians more notice.
Help us report truthfully on social media
As a multimedia journalist, my job is to take the quality, fact-based journalism produced by The Times of Israel newsroom and make it accessible across every platform — from Instagram posts to podcasts to short-form videos.
This is how many, especially young people, consume news these days. But misinformation is rampant on social media. Our team at ToI produces accurate, responsible short-form reporting on Israel and the Jewish world.
If you believe in the importance of factual social media journalism, please consider joining our reader support group, The Times of Israel Community. Your financial support is essential to sustain responsible multimedia reporting.
We’re really pleased that you’ve read X Times of Israel articles in the past month.
That’s why we started the Times of Israel - to provide discerning readers like you with must-read coverage of Israel and the Jewish world.
So now we have a request. Unlike other news outlets, we haven’t put up a paywall. But as the journalism we do is costly, we invite readers for whom The Times of Israel has become important to help support our work by joining The Times of Israel Community.
For as little as $6 a month you can help support our quality journalism while enjoying The Times of Israel AD-FREE, as well as accessing exclusive content available only to Times of Israel Community members.
Thank you, David Horovitz, Founding Editor of The Times of Israel
From the Liveblog of
Tuesday, November 6, 2018
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on Google
