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An Emerging Alliance: Russia and Israel
In October 1991, the Soviet Union and Israel agreed to restore diplomatic relations that were severed during the 1967 Six Day War. Two months later the Soviet Union collapsed. As of today, 161 of the 192 U.N. members recognize Israel, including all 15 former republics of the Soviet Union.
The core of this growing alliance is the more than one million Israeli citizens who were born in the former Soviet Union. Between 1970 and 1988, only 291,000 Jews, and their non-Jewish relatives, were allowed to leave the Soviet Union (165,000 went to Israel, and 126,000 went to the United States).
Earlier this year, President Putin said, “Russia and Israel have developed a special relationship primarily because 1.5 million Israeli citizens come from the former Soviet Union, they speak the Russian language, are the bearers of Russian culture, Russian mentality. They maintain relations with their relatives and friends in Russia, and this make the interstate relations very special.”
Although Russia has not designated Hezbollah and Hamas as terrorist organizations, Islamic terrorism partly explains Putin’s slow shift toward Israel over the years. It was evident, after his first meeting in [September]404 Not Found 2001[/url] with Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon (who was fluent in Russian).
Putin has visited Israel twice since coming to power. During his first trip, in 2005, Putin was reunited with Mina Yuditskaya Berliner, who was his German-language teacher in high school. During the visit, he bought her an apartment in Tel Aviv.
Putin returned to Israel in 2012. He met with Prime Minister Netanyahu and also visited the new Victory Monument in Netanya, which honors World War II veterans of the Soviet Union. Israel’s large Russian-speaking population includes thousands of Red Army veterans. These days, Israel hosts the largest May 9th celebrations outside of the former Soviet Union in tribute to the instrumental role of these Soviet veterans in the victory over Nazi Germany.
Israel also needs Russia, as well. Israel’s Start-Up Nation has been fueled by one million Russian-speaking Israelis. For this economic miracle to continue, the Israelis will need more engineers from the former Soviet Union. The Russian-speaking Israelis will have plenty of talent to choose from in the former Soviet Union.
The core of this growing alliance is the more than one million Israeli citizens who were born in the former Soviet Union. Between 1970 and 1988, only 291,000 Jews, and their non-Jewish relatives, were allowed to leave the Soviet Union (165,000 went to Israel, and 126,000 went to the United States).
Earlier this year, President Putin said, “Russia and Israel have developed a special relationship primarily because 1.5 million Israeli citizens come from the former Soviet Union, they speak the Russian language, are the bearers of Russian culture, Russian mentality. They maintain relations with their relatives and friends in Russia, and this make the interstate relations very special.”
Although Russia has not designated Hezbollah and Hamas as terrorist organizations, Islamic terrorism partly explains Putin’s slow shift toward Israel over the years. It was evident, after his first meeting in [September]404 Not Found 2001[/url] with Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon (who was fluent in Russian).
Putin has visited Israel twice since coming to power. During his first trip, in 2005, Putin was reunited with Mina Yuditskaya Berliner, who was his German-language teacher in high school. During the visit, he bought her an apartment in Tel Aviv.
Putin returned to Israel in 2012. He met with Prime Minister Netanyahu and also visited the new Victory Monument in Netanya, which honors World War II veterans of the Soviet Union. Israel’s large Russian-speaking population includes thousands of Red Army veterans. These days, Israel hosts the largest May 9th celebrations outside of the former Soviet Union in tribute to the instrumental role of these Soviet veterans in the victory over Nazi Germany.
Israel also needs Russia, as well. Israel’s Start-Up Nation has been fueled by one million Russian-speaking Israelis. For this economic miracle to continue, the Israelis will need more engineers from the former Soviet Union. The Russian-speaking Israelis will have plenty of talent to choose from in the former Soviet Union.
See Also:
- Diplomatic Snafu: U.S. Asks Israel for Clarifications on Drone Gifted to Russia
- Spain questions Israel over helicopter drone gift to Russia
- Obama's anti-Israel policies turn Russia into main protector
- Israeli Experts Sensed Putin's Role in U.S. Election Ahead of Washington
- Putin Sending 2 Giant Firefighting Planes to Israel
I'm curious as to what this means for NATO Europe. Assuming the U.S. doesn't collapse into utter chaos due to Russia's supposed role in the 2016 Election, this could mean the effective isolation of NATO Europe, and if the US turns inward over Trump, then Britain - which has ostensibly been anti-Russia - will have to choose between supporting the Israel-Russia axis, or the EU that it just recently voted to leave. Depending on which direction it went, this would leave the U.S. in an awkward position regardless of who the President is.
To clarify, President Obama - while not vehemently or blatantly anti-Israel - has been quite pro-Palestine, pro-Two-State, which has irrevocably contributed to the rise of Russian influence in Israel and vice-versa. While Netanyahu has voiced his support for Trump on several occasions, the sheer and blatant discord between the President-elect and the Washington Establishment means that the reproach with Israel may be short-lived, and the drift between Israel and the U.S. may have merely been papered-over and postponed at best.
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