Senior Israeli officials attended Russian ambassador's anti-West speech
Senior Israeli officials including Intelligence Minister Gila Gamliel and representatives of the Foreign Ministry and several municipalities attended a reception Sunday in Jerusalem organized by the Russian Embassy, listening as Russian Ambassador to Israel Anatoly Viktorov delivered a harsh anti-Western speech.
The reception at Jerusalem's Sergei Courtyard celebrated Russia Day, the national holiday of the Russian Federation. The Foreign Ministry was represented by the head of its Euro-Asia and Western Balkans Division, Simona Halperin, who was recently nominated Israel’s new ambassador to Russia, and two other officials.
After his speech, Viktorov cut the ribbon for a documentary photo exhibition, put together by the Russia state news agency TASS, dedicated to the history of bilateral relations since the founding of the state of Israel 75 years go. Tweets by the Russian Embassy show Gamliel at the reception alongside Viktorov and the ambassador holding a glass of champagne.
Ynet quoted Viktorov as saying at the reception, "Today, the Western countries are waging a long-planned total hybrid war against Russia, including in information, economy, psychology and culture, and using the most primitive and worst methods to affect Russia's good name." He went on, "Russia will oppose the attempts of representatives of the Kyiv regime and their Western patrons to evade responsibility and mislead the international community and to cover up the monstrous crimes of Ukrainian groups against the civilian population of Ukraine and Russia."
According to Israel’s Foreign Ministry, Israeli embassies are under no instructions not to invite Russian representatives and Israeli ministers have not been instructed to avoid Russian events. On May 31, Russian Ambassador to France Alexey Meshkov participated in the Israel Independence Day reception organized by the Israeli Embassy in Paris.
Bilateral relations with Russia are vital to Israel’s national security, so Israel has denied requests to supply Kyiv with arms. Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Israel has been careful not to provoke the country, which has a strong military presence in Syria. For the last few years, The Israeli and Russian armies have maintained a communication channel that enables Israeli jets to fly over Syrian skies without risk of targeting by Russian aerial defense. Russia is a permanent member of the UN Security Council and plays a role in the nuclear talks with Iran, and a large Jewish community resides in Russia.
Still, the presence of Israeli representatives at the Russian national day reception stands in contrast with most EU policies, which since the invasion have made a point of not attending any Russian embassy events nor inviting Russian diplomatic representatives to European national days.
While Israel refuses to supply Ukraine with weapons, its humanitarian assistance is expanding. On Tuesday, Israel’s Ambassador to Ukraine Michael Brodsky oversaw the delivery of more than 10 tons of water and food for the victims of destruction of the Nova Kakhovka dam in the Kherson region.
On June 6, Israel expressed concern over the harm to civilians caused by the destruction of the dam, but stopped short of blaming Russia for the disputed incident.
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lior Haiat tweeted, "Israel is shocked by the extensive damage to the Kakhovka dam. Thousands of innocent civilians are at peril because of this terrible destruction. Such deliberate targeting of critical infrastructure and people must be strongly condemned by the entire international community. Our thoughts and prayers are with the Ukrainian people in this difficult hour."
In a June 7 interview with Israel’s public broadcaster KAN, Foreign Minister Eli Cohen said that Israel stands by the Western world in its support for Ukraine. Cohen said that according to "estimates," Russia was responsible for the dam's destruction. Still, Cohen noted that Russia is a key player in the Middle East and is home to a significant Jewish community. Taking into account, Israel is making great efforts to assist Ukraine, he said.
Cohen said, "We are not located in Western Europe. We are situated in a very complex region. But despite that, we reach out to Ukraine, offer humanitarian help and currently advance the adaptation of an Israeli-developed missile-warning systems that could save the lives of Ukrainian citizens."