Putin greeted Trump backer Sheldon Adelson like an old friend
Jewish new move
What did Vladimir Putin do in the arms of the world behind the scenes
On September 17, at the Four Seasons Hotel in Moscow, Russian President Vladimir Putin met with the participants of the congress of the Jewish Foundation "Keren Ha-Yesod", and then, calling Israel a Russian-speaking country, withdrew from the chosen ones for a closed conversation. Special correspondent of "Ъ" Andrey Kolesnikov suggests that all this could be.
Vladimir Putin was supposed to meet with representatives of the Keren Ha-Yesod Foundation at the Four Seasons Hotel, or rather in the Dolgoruky Hall. The Foundation collects donations for Israel. It's definitely a big organization. And I had no idea how much.
- You can even say, - businessman Mikhail Friedman explained to me, - that this is such a quasi-state organization, like the Peace Fund, which was under the Soviet Union.
It was clear.
I knew that the Keren Ha-Yesod Foundation was established back in 1920 in London at the World Zionist Congress, that is, long before the Israeli state itself was established. That is, he was, consider, 100 years old.
The details of what was that day in the very center of Moscow, set out in the certificate prepared by the fund itself, made an impression. Among the members of the club are the Rothschild family, the Brazilian Safra family, the Canadian Bronfman family, the South African family is Kaplanov... Russian, I will add from myself, Vekselbergov...
These people, who do not try to be noticed, gather every two years. In 2006 they were in London, in 2008 - in Paris, in 2009 - in Rome, in 2011 - in Washington, in 2013 - in Madrid... State leaders meet with them everywhere: Silvio Berlusconi, Barack Obama, Juan Carlos I... In general, goosebumps in some sense run from this focus of names and money.
- Do you think this is the same Jewish conspiracy? - Mikhail Friedman asked me, apparently catching in my eyes the impression made by Vladimir Putin's meeting with these people in an open mode, and most importantly - in a closed one, the meeting that was not announced on this day, but would have taken place in any weather - with several of the best people of the fund no longer in the "Long-Eared" hall, but in one other, even the name of which I do not even risk saying out loud (just because I don't know).
- I think so, - I nodded, although I wanted to literally shout something about the world backstage that had finally opened, where the president of Russia was dragged, it's scary to say.
- And I think not," Mikhail Friedman said carelessly, although do we know what he might have thought...
Everyone dreams of meeting Mikhail Friedman
Photo: Dmitry Azarov, Kommersant
Everyone dreams of meeting Mikhail Friedman
Photo: Dmitry Azarov, Kommersant
I knew that these people had a very busy day. At 11:15, the speaker Harry Koren, Ambassador of Israel to the Russian Federation, read a brief report on the topic "The duty of gratitude of the Jewish people to the Red Army". Then there was a "walking tour to the Alexander Garden" with the "Memorial Ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, including the prayer "El Male Rahamim" for the dead Jewish soldiers". Then, as indicated in the program of the forum, "light snacks and security check" happened, and only then - "a meeting with His Excellency Vladimir Putin, President of the Russian Federation".
And in the evening there was another, decisive event: "Final dinner and reception at the estate of Temur and Zhanna Ben-Yehuda Khikhinashvili", where, apparently, the apotheosis called "cocus" was supposed to take place, that is, a fundraising evening for Israel, when each forum participant goes on stage and says out loud the amount of his donations to the fund (and the minimum donor contribution is $250 thousand, but this is not considered a very serious approach).
- Can you tell me how much you intend to donate? - I decided to ask businessman Viktor Vekselberg in the afternoon, before Vladimir Putin's arrival.
- What are you, - he answered reasonably. - Who would donate it to me now...
Well, maybe I was just joking.
- Do you know how the name of the fund is translated? - the chief rabbi of Russia Berl Lazar asked me. - "Fundamental"! This is the foundation of Israel! All the main money for Israel is collected here!
That's what I got. But so far I have not understood another: why did Vladimir Putin have to come to the members of the foundation on the day when the Knesset elections are held in Israel? Yes, agitation is, of course, prohibited, but who can ban information messages flying from the Russian capital to the Israeli one? And when I thought about it, I had no idea, of course, what it would really be about. And at least the size of these messages.
- No, - Berl Lazar shrugged, - the decision that the forum would be held in Moscow these days was made a year ago.
- So the decision on the date of the elections in Israel was made even earlier? - I clarified.
- No, six months ago! - Burl Lazar laughed. - But maybe they were just oriented...
He still didn't dare to agree.
- On your decision? - I finished.
Berl Lazar nodded with relief.
- Why, - I instied, - the President of Russia agreed so easily? Such a schedule... Today there is a meeting in the Ministry of Emergency Situations about floods, and most importantly, a meeting with Gennady Zyuganov! The day is full of significant events!
- I was laughed at, of course, in the administration of the President of Russia: "How can we tell you where the president will be on this day in a year?!" - Berl Lazar also smiled. - But just like that the stars came together happily!
They came together and didn't, I analyzed. After all, they squeezed, you can say, the meeting into such a schedule. After all, now even the conversation with, I'm not afraid of this word, Gennady Zyuganov, I thought, goes into the night or even under question: such conversations alone with the backstage do not end quickly... Simply because they haven't even started so far... Or we, as always, don't know something.
Oh, there were more and more questions, and fewer and fewer answers.
Meanwhile, Rabbi Berl Lazar told me about people who had already passed to the "Dolgoruky" hall and settled in their seats:
- Many people said that their first installments were $100, $200, $300... And they couldn't give more! And it was 20-30 years ago... And now it's millions!..
I looked at the people in the hall and understood: yes, the cream of Jewish society did not live their lives and save money in vain. Finally, they had a reason to part with them. And they didn't look depressed. On the contrary, their faces were bright. Perhaps their thoughts were only at the evening at the estate of Temur and Zhanna Ben-Yehuda Khikhinashvili, on that stage where it was impossible to hit the dirt with your face and name the number lower than your brother who came out before you, and most importantly, the one who will come out after you. But you can't name it above, that's the thing... Yes, these people had something to think about and think about now...
Then I saw that a person moved in a wheelchair in one small hall, who, I immediately understood, deserves special attention. He was very not young, very, but his gaze was tenact and smooth and precise hand movements. He was accompanied by two guards, and this in itself was unusual: here, on the third floor, where several checkpoints had already been passed and now it was perhaps the safest place on earth, this man was allowed to move with security, and I suspect - with armed... Yes, Vladimir Putin in the "Long-Handed" hall, I was sure, he would walk without such satellites...
- Who is it? - I quietly asked a knowledgeable person.
He looked at me, it seemed to me, even with dislike:
- It's Sheldon Adelson! The richest Jew in the world! 50 yards... - I was answered with a natural nervous sigh. - The main casinos in Las Vegas... But it's not the main thing for him...
- And what's the main thing? - I asked again, feeling that my legs, and not just the legs of Sheldon Adelson, were starting to weaken.
- No one knows... - the answer was not encouraging. - And with him Miriam... His wife...
Miriam, I saw, inspires at least no less awe in my interlocutor.
- He's Bibi's main sponsor, by the way... - I heard an unexpected continuation with a rustling whisper.
It was, of course, about the current Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu, who recently met with Vladimir Putin in Sochi and heard, apparently, what he wanted from the Russian president: that Russia would be happy if the Russian-speaking part of Israel voted for Mr. Netanyahu's party...
Meanwhile, the chair with Sheldon Adelson was rolled to the very window overlooking Manezhnaya Square, and then something unexpected happened: he was raised, and he stood up, and now stood, looking, it seems to me, into the more or less ugly creation of Luzhkov's hands. So he could stand! What a metamorphosis happened to him unexpectedly!
Sheldon Adelson's chair is more of a self-propelled machine
Photo: Andrey Kolesnikov, Kommersant
Sheldon Adelson's chair is more of a self-propelled machine
Photo: Andrey Kolesnikov, Kommersant
I understood, of course, that if his condition is really at least close to the announced figure, then such money can lift anyone from anywhere to any height. And the reasons why he preferred to mostly sit in a wheelchair were also clear. Of course, we put our vigilance to sleep and we seem to take a nap all the time and all that... It's humanly understandable. And when we consider it necessary, we stand up in full growth... And it doesn't seem like much here. No fund and no Israel.
When Sheldon Adelson was rolling past me to the exit, I couldn't resist and asked him how many dollars he intended to donate to Israel today.
- Dollars? - he asked again.
Actually, I was sure he wouldn't answer me.
"We donate several hundred million dollars each," he sighed.
Well, that's it, there are no more questions.
And Sheldon Adelson went on, waiting for Vladimir Putin in the "Long-Eared" hall. And with all his fortune (and also in this state of his), he spent more than two hours waiting before the president of Russia appeared.
No, those present didn't mumble, by the way. They understood everything (what I, for example, still don't understand).
Appearing, the President of Russia greeted the people from the front row for a long time, and you know, with Sheldon Adelson - like an old acquaintance.
- I know that you are not here for the first day, - he told them. - I hope you like it here... Without any exaggeration, I can say with pride that, probably, there has never been such a level of relations between Russia and Israel... - the president hesitated, as if for the sake of justice, remembering: or maybe it was still? And I remembered. - If you don't remember, of course, the very first months... Or maybe a few, a couple of years of formation of the State of Israel.
The participants willingly applauded. In general, it seems that they have been involved in the last couple of hours at least some active actions.
But the President of Russia quickly proceeded to the main thing:
- Russian-Israeli relations are distinguished by a meaningful political dialogue. We also meet regularly with the Prime Minister, Mr. Netanyahu, often exchange views and consult with each other by phone, discuss topical, sometimes the most acute issues of the global and regional agenda of bilateral cooperation in working mode.
Yes, these harmless words at least now could be put into the news reports of any respectable Israeli TV channel.
- How you may have paid attention, - Vladimir Putin tirelessly continued about the same thing, - just the other day I had the pleasure of hosting Mr. Netanyahu in Sochi, in the south of Russia... By the way, during our conversation with him, he told me about the contacts of his family with your organization, said that "Keren ha-Yesod" is an organization that enjoys really great authority in the world, deals with very important, useful and necessary issues for people!
But it seemed like a bit of an overdo.
But was it too much! The overdo was the following:
- The Prime Minister warmly recalled, by the way, that his grandfather, rabbi, often and actively spoke at the "Keren ha-Yesod" events. He was an excellent speaker, as the Prime Minister said, and for his eloquence he was compared even to the famous Jewish poet Chaim Byalik. At home, the Netanyahu family still keeps the diploma of the foundation, which was awarded to the grandfather of the Prime Minister, for his contribution to the activities of your organization!
The applause was, of course, already very loud, but was it worth demonstrating Mr. Netanyahu's unbreakable connection with this fund right now? Apparently, it was worth it.
However, the statement that overshadowed all the others at the meeting in Four Seasons was not destined to be that.
And this one:
- Citizens of Russia and Israel are bound by family, kinship, friendship ties. This is a real network, common family, I say without exaggeration! Almost 2 million Russian-speaking citizens of Israel live in this country. We consider Israel a Russian-speaking state! - it seemed to be from Vladimir Putin.
A moment of stunnor - and violent long applause. No, these people did not consider Israel a Russian-speaking state - rather, on the contrary. But the main thing is that they were not bored now, and it was worth the most expensive. They now had something to tell about this meeting, and even before it moved into an intimate, closed part, not for all of them.
Meanwhile, Vladimir Putin nodded, as if confirming that what was said now is not an accident and did not break out, but even suffered, perhaps. And he also said softly:
- Yes, yes...
So he insisted.
- In general, you know, I have to say something, - the Russian president appealed very trustingly to the people in the hall. - When we are faced with negative phenomena, with attempts to revise the results of World War II, to distort history, I, on the one hand, with pleasure, and on the other hand, with anxiety should note that almost the only organizations that publicly opposed all these attempts were Jewish organizations in Europe, including in the Baltic countries! Of course, I always think about it, and I think with gratitude, but it's a pity that it's just them. After all, people were not afraid to go outside, protest, put on the clothes of concentration camp prisoners, reminded of those events, took an active open position. Thank you very much to them for that.
It was not the first time he spoke about it, and it was obvious: indeed, with gratitude.
- The further away from us is the events of World War II, the higher our responsibility, both state and personal, for ensuring that its bitter lessons, exploits and sacrifices are never forgotten. Soon, in May next year, we will celebrate the 75th anniversary of the Great Victory together and, of course, we expect the Israeli leadership to accept the invitation and come to the Victory Parade on Red Square and other solemn events.
Of course, he did not now call the Israeli leadership by their last name: what if it, despite all these unprecedented efforts, will still change?
Vladimir Putin and several chosen ones finally retired to another hall.
And it's better not to even think about it.
Adelson with Putin’s rabbi Berel Lazar: