Damascus is close to concluding a large deal with Russia to procure thousands of advanced anti-tank missiles for the Syrian army.
Popularity: 3% [?]
February 23, 2007
Lebanese Prime Minister Fuad Siniora is to travel to Moscow for talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, AFP reports.
Popularity: 1% [?]
December 13, 2006A Russian tourist, who tried to take picture against backdrop of Azrieli Towers in Tel Aviv was pounced by security personnel, accused of spying, planning terror attack for Hezbollah. Security personnel searched Ekaterina Kopilov’s belongings, interrogated her, and squeezed every bit of desire to return for another vacation in Israel, Ynetnews.com website reports.
Popularity: 2% [?]
November 7, 2006Russian combat engineers working in Lebanon to repair infrastructure devastated during a month of fighting this summer between Hizbollah and the Israeli military, will leave the country in a month and a half, the defense minister is quoted by RIA Novosti news agency Friday.
About 100 bridges and 60 highways were destroyed in the fighting, which claimed some 1,200 Lebanese and 160 Israeli lives. Russian sappers, who pledged to work 10 hours a day to rebuild eight bridges and adjacent roads in two months, started the reconstruction effort on October 9.
“The first two bridges have been repaired,†said Sergei Ivanov, who is also a deputy prime minister. “All eight bridges will be repaired in a month and a half, and then all our servicemen will leave Lebanon.â€
The upper house of the Russian parliament approved sending a battalion of combat engineers to Lebanon on September 26.
Ivanov earlier said that Russia’s 308-man contingent in Lebanon will not participate in the UN peacekeeping group, but will operate on the basis of bilateral agreements between the Russian and Lebanese governments.
Ivanov also said Friday that Russia will receive 500 million rubles ($18.6 mln) from Lebanon for assistance provided.
“Aside from the economic effect, this operation will allow Russia to promote its image in the Middle East,†the minister said during a meeting in parliament’s upper house, RIA Novosti reported.
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October 27, 2006Russia’s defense minister said Friday he was skeptical about UN peacekeepers’ ability to force members of the Lebanon-based Islamist movement Hezbollah to lay down their arms, RIA Novosti news agency reports.“I have serious doubts the UN will be able to perform this function,†Sergei Ivanov said.
Hezbollah disarmament is a major objective laid down in a ceasefire resolution adopted by the UN Security Council in mid-August to end a month of hostilities between the Islamist group and Israel, which claimed the lives of around 1,500 Lebanese civilians.
Under the resolution, the UN peacekeeping contingent in southern Lebanon, known as UNIFIL, will be expanded to 15,000. The multinational force will assist the Lebanese army in regaining control of the area following Israel’s withdrawal, creating a new buffer zone “free of any armed personnel, assets and weapons other than those of the government of Lebanon and UNIFIL.†However, the peacekeepers have no mandate to seize arms from Hezbollah militants, unless carried openly, RIA Novosti reported.
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Israel’s prime minister on Sunday downplayed the Russian foreign minister’s comments that it was “unrealistic†to demand that Hamas immediately recognize Israel and disarm, the Associated Press news agency reports.
The demands have been made by Israel and the so-called Quartet of international Mideast negotiators, to which Russia belongs.
On Friday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Hamas, which leads the Palestinian government and is sworn to Israel’s destruction, should be given more time to accept these demands.
“In the end, the policy will be set by (Russian President Vladimir) Putin,†an Israeli government official quoted Prime Minister Ehud Olmert as telling the Cabinet at its weekly session.
In the meantime, Olmert said, “there is no change in the principles laid down by the Quartet and Russia,†according to the official who took part in the meeting.
The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he is not authorized to discuss policy with the media.
Meanwhile, one Palestinian was killed and 15 were wounded Sunday in a battle with Israeli forces in the West Bank town of Tamoun, witnesses and Palestinian security officials said. Israeli troops were there to arrest an Islamic Jihad militant.
Also Sunday, a Palestinian security officer allied with moderate President Mahmoud Abbas’
Fatah faction was killed in internal Palestinian violence in the Gaza Strip, Palestinian security officials said.
Since Hamas took over the Palestinian government last spring, Western powers and Israel have imposed crushing international sanctions in an effort to pressure Hamas to accept the Quartet’s demands. So far, the Islamic militant group has remain unbowed, even though the sanctions have rendered it unable to pay 165,000 civil servants who provide for one-third of Palestinians.
Olmert said Russian officials did not urge Israel to soften its stance regarding Hamas during his three-day visit to Moscow last week.
At the same time, he acknowledged that while Russia has become more evenhanded in its approach to Israel, Moscow could not be expected to totally reverse its historical support for the Palestinians.
In an interview published Friday in the Kuwaiti news agency KUNA, Lavrov said Hamas could “move gradually toward accepting†the international conditions.
“Demanding now that Hamas fully accept the Quartet’s conditions, such as the recognition of Israel, the denunciation of violence against Israel and the acceptance of all existing agreements is unrealistic at the present stage,†Lavrov said.
After Hamas won parliamentary elections in January, Moscow invited the militant group’s leaders to visit over Israeli objections.
Lavrov told Olmert in Moscow that keeping up contacts with Hamas could help to moderate them. Olmert told the Russians he disagreed.
Popularity: 3% [?]
October 24, 2006Military sources said the Israel Army has collected 39 Russian-origin anti-tank missiles from Hezbollah outposts in southern Lebanon, the World Tribune has reported. They said the missiles included the AT-14 Kornet and the AT-13 Metis.
“Some of the missiles were still in their original packaging, which identified them as having been manufactured in Russia,†a military source said.
The sources said photographs of the missiles were delivered to Russia in September as evidence that weapons exported by Moscow ended up with Hezbollah. They said the Kornets were exported to Syria in 2002.
“The [Israel] army also found bills of lading and serial numbers with the missiles,†the source said. “It is probable that some of these missiles that were ordered by Iran for Hezbollah via Syria.â€
The Hezbollah acquisition of Russian-origin missiles was discussed during the visit by Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert to Moscow. On Wednesday, Putin met Russian President
Vladimir Putin in a discussion said to have focused on Iran’s nuclear program.
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov was also said to have met Olmert. Last week, the Defense Ministry ordered tighter supervision over Russia’s arms exports.
“The determination that there should be supervision over arms exports has been achieved,†Cabinet Secretary Yisrael Maimon said on Thursday.
Putin was said to have been angered by Israeli evidence that Iran and Syria supplied Russian missiles to Hezbollah. But Putin was not expected to sanction the regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad, a leading Middle East ally of Moscow.
“However, this does not mean that Russia will completely stop selling weapons to Iran and Syria, as the Israelis want,†the Moscow-based Vremya Novostei daily said on Wednesday. “Cooperation with Teheran and Damascus, including in the oil and gas and nuclear spheres, bring Moscow dividends — and not only material. Russia plays a unique middleman role.â€
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October 20, 2006
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