🇮🇱🤝🇷🇺 Israel, Russia... Are They Friends or Enemies?

 

 

 Table of Contents

 

- Introduction

- History of Israel-Russia Relations

    - Soviet Support for Israel's Formation

    - Severing Ties after the Six-Day War

    - Renewed Cooperation in the 1990s

- Putin's Russia and Israel

    - Military Coordination in Syria 

    - Containing Iran's Influence

    - Trade and Cultural Exchanges

- Remaining Sources of Tension

    - Russian Alliances with Israel's Enemies

    - Conflicting Interests in Syria

- The Future of Israel-Russia Ties

- Conclusion

- FAQs

 

 🇮🇱🤝🇷🇺 Israel, Russia... Are they friends or enemies?

 

 Introduction

 

The relationship between Israel and Russia has undergone profound shifts over the past 75 years. Israel, Russia... Are they friends or enemies? At times, the two countries have actively collaborated while at other periods, they have severed ties and even engaged in proxy battles.

 

Understanding the complex dynamics between Jerusalem and Moscow requires examining how geopolitics, security interests, trade, and cultural ties have both united these two powerful nations and pushed them apart across different eras.

 

 History of Israel-Russia Relations

 

 Soviet Support for Israel's Formation

 

In 1947, the Soviet Union actually played a crucial role in Israel's founding as an independent state. Moscow voted to approve the UN partition plan calling for an Arab and Jewish homeland in the British mandate of Palestine.

 

Early Israeli leaders like David Ben Gurion had previously lived in Russia and worked to cultivate a strategic partnership with Moscow. This bore fruit with important Czechoslovakian arms transfers to the new Israeli military during the 1948 Arab-Israeli war.

 

However, relations would soon unravel over ideological differences and Cold War rivalries.

 

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 Severing Ties after the Six-Day War

 

The 1967 Six-Day War marked a pivotal moment as the Soviet Union cut diplomatic ties and began firmly backing Israel's enemies including Egypt, Syria, and anti-Western Arab nationalist regimes. Arms shipments and military advisors poured into the region from Moscow.

 

For over 20 years, the two nations clashed via these proxies in a series of conflicts including the War of Attrition from 1967-1970 and the October 1973 Yom Kippur War. 

 

 Renewed Cooperation in the 1990s

 

After the Cold War ended, Russia and Israel slowly rebuilt working relations during the 1990s. Many Soviet Jews immigrated to Israel, forming an important cultural bridge. Economic and security engagement gradually increased.

 

This set the stage for far more strategic coordination against shared threats in the Putin era.

 

 Putin's Russia and Israel

 

 Military Coordination in Syria

 

Over the last decade, Israel and Russia have closely coordinated their military activities in Syria, despite being on opposing sides. Nearly weekly discussions between defense officials help prevent accidental clashes and tamp down potential crises.

 

Moscow has generally given Israel leeway to strike Iranian assets and Hezbollah targets that threaten Israel's security from Syrian soil. In return, Israel often gives advance warning of attacks to avoid endangering Russian troops.

 

 Containing Iran's Influence

 

A key area of alignment has been a shared desire to limit Iran's military footprint in Syria and the broader Middle East.

 

Russia itself views many Iranian-backed militias as destabilizing forces that undermine its regional interests. As Iran's nuclear program accelerates, Israel also sees Russia as an important player in containing Tehran's ambitions.

 

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 Trade and Cultural Exchanges

 

People-to-people ties have blossomed with over one million Russians and Russian-speakers now living in Israel, making up some 15-20 percent of the population. This demographic serves as an influential bridge.

 

Bilateral trade has surged to around $5 billion annually in recent years as Israel provides a hi-tech hub for Russian companies and startups in areas like cybersecurity and digital health. Agricultural imports from Russia have also risen as the two economies find areas of complementarity.

 

 Remaining Sources of Tension

 

However, some enduring sources of competition and distrust persist that prevent a full rapprochement between Israel and Russia.

 

 Russian Alliances with Israel's Enemies

 

First, Russia maintains close relations with adversaries like Iran and Hezbollah's parent organization in Lebanon. Russia has provided sophisticated weaponry and technical assistance with Tehran's nuclear and missile programs according to Israeli intelligence.

 

Moscow also appears reluctant to sever energy and economic ties with Iran which provide important leverage against Western sanctions.

 

 Conflicting Interests in Syria 

 

Israel also charges that Russia has turned a blind eye to Iran's efforts to transfer weapons to Hezbollah through Syria and embed itself in areas near Israel's borders. This could threaten vital security red lines for Israel.

 

There are likewise tensions around opposing visions for Syria’s future as Moscow looks to reassert control through the Assad regime while Israel sees no peaceful future under his continued leadership.

 

 🤔 The Future of Israel-Russia Ties

 

Russia and Israel clearly have some convergent interests in Syria and containing Iran's influence. But enduring distrust rooted in Cold War rivalries and clashing regional security imperatives persist.

 

Much depends on Russia's larger strategic direction under Vladimir Putin and whether zero-sum mentalities focused on spheres of influence eclipse cooperation against shared threats.

 

With wise, pragmatic leadership that builds trust through small positive steps, selective collaboration could continue. But relations remain delicate and reversible as the Ukraine war destabilizes Russia's role in the Middle East.

 

 Conclusion

 

Israel, Russia... Are they friends or enemies? There is no simple binary answer as both cooperative and rival dimensions shape this complex association depending on the timeframe and issue at stake.

 

Geopolitical realism intermixed with cultural affinities defines a fluid partnership that resides in the gray zone between alliance and adversity. While the relationship is not entirely harmonious, shared interests around containing Iran and stabilizing Syria facilitate tactful coordination rather than overt confrontation.

 

A prudent Israeli approach understands Russia can selectively collaborate but also poses threats through alliances with Iran and Syria. Calibrated expectations call for vigilance and guarded interaction aimed at pragmatic risk management rather than aspirations for genuine friendship.

 

 FAQs

 

What role did the Soviet Union play in the founding of Israel?

 

Answer: The Soviet Union supported the 1947 UN General Assembly partition plan for Palestine which called for an independent Jewish state, unlike Britain and the United States which preferred a federated one state solution at the time. Moscow later provided important diplomatic backing and arms transfers to the new state of Israel during the 1948 Arab-Israeli war including critical Czechoslovakian weapons acquisitions. However, within a few years, Cold War tensions led to severing of relations between the communist Soviet Union and Israel on opposing sides.

 

Why did Russia and Israel rebuild ties after the Cold War?

 

Answer: The opening between Russia and Israel emerged due to three driving forces in the 1990s. First, over one million Soviet Jews immigrated to Israel following the USSR's dissolution, forming an influential cultural bridge. Second, with the Cold War receding, economic data security interests and incentives for trade supplanted ideological battles as prime motivators Third, facing shared threats like radical Sunni Islamism and Iran's nuclear pursuits created impetus to quietly cooperate on intelligence and counterterrorism.

 

Do Russia and Israel coordinate military activities in Syria? Why?

 

Answer: Yes, Israel and Russia have established a deconfliction mechanism to coordinate Israel's air campaign against Iranian assets and Hezbollah and Russia's support for the Syrian regime. Nearly weekly meetings between defense officials help avoid accidental conflict and escalation that neither side wants. Russia also seeks to use this channel to restrain Israeli strikes from undermining its broader position in Syria by threatening regime stability. For its part, Israel leverages these talks to drive efforts limiting Iran’s military presence targeting Israel from Syrian soil.

 

What are the main sources of tensions between Israel and Russia? 

 

Answer: Major tensions emanate from Russia's continued ties with Israeli adversaries like Iran and Syria. This includes technical military assistance to Iran's nuclear and missile programs while avoiding strong pressure over Tehran's regional aggression. Israel also criticizes Russia for enabling Iran to transfer weapons through Syria to Lebanese Hezbollah. Russia's support for keeping Bashar al-Assad in power also collides with Israel's position that no peaceful future exists under Assad postwar. Economic interests with Iran including energy trade also limit Russia's willingness to isolate Tehran.

 

Could Israel and Russia ever become genuine friends? What are the obstacles?

 

Answer: While selective security and economic cooperation driven by pragmatic self-interest occurs, genuine friendship faces major roadblocks. Russia still declines to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital. Perceived threats from NATO expansion and Western ties also stoke tensions with Israel caught in broader geopolitical competitions. Russia's backing of Syrian President Assad against Sunni rebels also elevates tensions. Affinity from a million Russian-Israeli citizens only partially mitigates these clashes over core national interests.