Russia’s Defense Chief Makes 1st Official Visit To Israel

Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu was scheduled to arrive in Israel on Monday for his first official visit since assuming his position in 2012. He is set to meet with his Israeli counterpart Avigdor Liberman as well as Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu. The trip comes amid growing calls by Jerusalem for Moscow, which has assumed a leading role in the war in Syria, to rein in Iran’s military activities in that country. Netanyahu has repeatedly voiced concern over a ceasefire deal brokered by Russia and the U.S. in southern Syria, which he claims turns a blind eye to Tehran’s goal of gaining a permanent military foothold in the Golan Heights, along the shared border, a “red line” for his government. Such an eventuality would likewise allow the Islamic Republic to consolidate its so-called “Shiite Crescent,” a contiguous land corridor spanning Iraq, Syria and Lebanon—a development vehemently opposition by Jerusalem and regional Sunni countries that fear Iran’s growing expansionism. Russia intervened militarily in the Syrian conflict in September 2015, prompting Netanyahu to cozy up to Moscow, making four trips over the last eighteen months to meet with Russian leader Vladimir Putin—an effort many suggest has been less than successful. Netanyahu’s aim is to both stem Tehran’s influence as well as mitigate the potential for accidents in the Syrian theater. In this respect, Israel has regularly conducted air strikes in both Lebanon and Syria to prevent the transfer of advanced weaponry to Tehran’s Shiite proxy Hizbullah and has thus developed with Russia a de-confliction mechanism to avoid any unwanted direct confrontation. Following Shoigu’s visit, Liberman will leave Wednesday for a four-day trip to the United States, where he will meet with American defense chief James Mattis for the fifth time this year. Both the Iran nuclear deal—following President Donald Trump’s declaration of Iranian non-compliance last week—and Syria are expected to top the agenda.