Commenting on Israeli counter-terrorism activities, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Vershinin said Moscow hopes Jerusalem “will exercise good judgment in the region.”
By: World Israel News Staff
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Vershinin issued a veiled threat to Israel over its counter-terrorism operations in Syria while stating that the channel between Russia and Israel to prevent military clashes in Syria will remain in place.
Speaking to Russia’s Sputnik News on Thursday in the wake of the Russian deployment of the S-300 air defense batteries in Syria, Vershinin claimed that the systems were to “provide a qualitatively new level of air defense,” underscoring that Moscow hopes Jerusalem “will exercise good judgment in the region,” despite Israel’s statements that it will continue with its military operations in Syria.
Russia has completed the delivery of S-300 air defense systems to Syria, the Russian defense minister said Tuesday, despite opposition to the move from the US and Israel.
Russia announced the S-300 delivery to Syria after the September 17th downing of a Russian reconnaissance plane by Syrian forces who were responding to an Israeli air strike – a friendly fire incident that stoked regional tensions.
The Russian plane’s crash threatened the close security ties between Russia and Israel. Earlier, Russia had suspended the delivery of S-300s, which Israel feared Syria could use against it.
The IDF blamed Syria for the Russian plane’s downing, saying that its own fighter jets were targeting a Syrian military facility involved in providing weapons to Hezbollah. The IDF said it had warned Russia of the coming raid in line with de-confliction agreements.
While the deployment of the S-300 batteries in Syria could hinder Israeli operations against Iranian and terror-related targets in the country, the obstacle is not insurmountable, and Israel has vowed to continue its operations.
AP contributed to this report.