Netanyahu and Putin to meet over downed Russian plane

Israel’s prime minister announced that he will meet Russia’s president for the first time since the downing of a Russian warplane by Syrian forces reacting to an Israeli airstrike last month.

By: AP and World Israel News

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been trying to ease tensions with Russia since the incident in which Syria downed a Russian spy plane during an attempt to retaliate against Israeli aircraft.

Russia blamed Israel for the shootdown and responded by supplying Syria with sophisticated S-300 air defense systems.

Speaking to his Cabinet Sunday, Netanyahu said he had spoken to Russian President Vladimir Putin and would soon travel to Moscow for face-to-face talks.

He said he had stressed the importance of military coordination with Russia, while also reiterating that Israel “will act at all times to prevent Iran from establishing a military presence” in Syria.

Netanyahu added at the beginning of the meeting, “Israel will continue to operate to prevent Iran from military entrenchment in Syria and to prevent it from transferring lethal weapons to Hezbollah in Lebanon,” TPS reported.

Israel frequently carries out airstrikes against Iran and its terror proxies in Syria, in addition to striking bases maintained by Bashar Al-Assad’s Syrian regime.

Russia’s position on the attack changed several times in the days immediately following the incident, with the Kremlin initially blaming Israel after which Putin backed off the accusations.

While Israeli officials traveled to Moscow to present a report demonstrating that Syria indiscriminately launched dozens of barrages for 40 minutes, the Russian defense establishment continued to blame Israel, notwithstanding Putin’s statements, and delivered the S-300 missile defense system to the Syrian regime shortly thereafter.

The Israeli report documented Syria’s increasingly aggressive responses to Israeli airstrikes, including Assad forces’ reacting to a large-scale Israeli strike in May with approximately 170 Syrian anti-aircraft missiles.