 MOSCOW (AP) - Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert will visit Moscow beginning Monday, aiming to focus on Russian arms sales to Israel's enemies. By contrast, Russia hopes the meeting will bolster its image as a Middle East peacemaker.
Olmert's trip, which will include a meeting with President Dmitry Medvedev on Tuesday, will probably be one of his last diplomatic ventures; he announced his resignation in late September. That leaves him with little apparent influence, and Medvedev's invitation may amount to a respectful farewell.
But Olmert said Sunday he would emphasize Israel's security concerns, including "the supply of arms to irresponsible elements whose activities worry us very much." He also said he would press for work to resolve "the Iranian problem, where Russia plays a special role."
Iran says it plans to buy from Russia advanced S-300 anti-aircraft missiles that could detect aircraft sent to destroy its nuclear facilities. Syria, which backs Hezbollah guerrillas who battled Israel in Lebanon in 2006, reportedly has asked to buy them, too.
Russia has not confirmed the reports, but Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said recently his government was prepared to sell Syria arms with a "defensive character."
On sales to Iran, state weapons exporter Rosoboronexport said only that "we do not have such information," the ITAR-Tass news agency reported Monday.
Russia, meanwhile, is emphasizing its role as one of the "Quartet" of international mediators on the Middle East.
"The situation in the Middle East, the peace process and international priorities for its promotion ... will be among the central issue on the agenda," a Kremlin official said on customary condition of anonymity.
The official also said attention would be given to "maximizing the potential of the mutually beneficial business partnership between Russia and Israel," noting that bilateral trade exceeded US$2.5 billion in 2007.
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has frequently called for Israel's destruction, and Israel suspects he means to carry out that objective by developing nuclear bombs with the help of a Russian-built nuclear power plant. Iran says its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes.
Israel hopes international diplomacy will persuade Iran to halt its nuclear program but says "all options are on the table" if diplomacy fails. In 1981, Israeli warplanes destroyed an Iraqi nuclear reactor.
The U.N. Security Council has approved three rounds of sanctions on Iran. But Russia, a council member with veto power, opposes tightening the sanctions any further.
After four decades of Cold War animosity, ties between Moscow and Israel improved significantly after the disintegration of the Soviet Union in 1991. Israel is also home to more than 1 million Soviet emigres.
But Moscow's position on Iran and arms sales to Syria have strained ties, as have Israeli weapons sales to Georgia, which Russia briefly invaded in August in support of pro-Russia secessionists. |