10 December, 2023
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has criticized Russia’s stance on the war in Gaza in a call with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Netanyahu’s office announced on Sunday that the Israeli leader had expressed his dissatisfaction with positions taken by Russian representatives at the United Nations and in other international forums.
Russia is among the countries to have criticized Israeli bombardment of Gaza, in which thousands of Palestinian civilians have died, and has said Israel’s “indiscriminate” use of force breaks international law.
The Israeli premier told Putin that “any country that had been struck with a criminal terrorist assault such as Israel experienced would have reacted with no less force than Israel is using.”
Netanyahu also criticised the “dangerous cooperation between Russia and Iran,” according to a summary of the discussion provided by his office.
However, according to Kremlin officials, the conversation was less fraught with conflict.
In a statement, Moscow responded that although Putin assured his support in the fight against terrorists, he also noted it was extremely important that the fight not lead to serious consequences for the civilian population.
At the same time, Netanyahu expressed his appreciation for Russia’s commitment to the release of Israelis with Russian citizenship being held captive by Islamist Hamas militants.
He also asked Putin for Russia to exert pressure on the Red Cross with the aim of having its representatives visit Israeli hostages and bring them medicine, Netanyahu’s office said.
Israeli media reported that Netanyahu left the cabinet meeting for the 50-minute phone call with Putin. The last conversation had reportedly taken place on October 17.
© Deutsche Presse-Agentur GmbH