Bolton Visit to Israel Seen as being Linked to Meeting with Putin Aide

Sources in Jerusalem and Washington see a direct connection between National Security Adviser John Bolton’s 48-hour trip to Israel and a scheduled meeting with Nikolai Patrushev, senior security aide to Russian President Vladimir Putin. President Trump met with Putin a month ago, at which time it was said that post-civil war Syria was the key issue discussed. Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu has been the most vocal regional leader, demanding that Damascus’s regional patron, Putin, assure that Israel’s enemies [read Iran] leave the region altogether. That, however, is unlikely and the talks are believed to center on how far from the Israel-Syria border hostile troops will be stationed and what details such as rules of engagement will be dictated by Putin. Netanyahu has made numerous trips to Moscow and has spoken with the Russian leader on the phone numerous times as he presses his demands for Iran to leave Syria and Russia not sell sophisticated defensive weapons that would jeopardize Israel’s ability to act against hostile forces’ activity in Syrian territory.