On Friday, Russian President Vladimir Putin received Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett at his residence in Russia’s Black Sea resort of Sochi.
This meeting is recorded as the first between the two since Bennett took the office as Israel’s prime minister in June, after establishing a coalition government that ultimately ended his predecessor Benjamin Netanyahu’s over-a-decade-long rule.
Inaugurating the meeting, Putin greeted Russian-Israeli ties as “unique,” saying Israel is home to the largest Russian-speaking community abroad. He said the volume of trade and economic relations is “modest,” but they are on a positive line.
Even though his country is known to be significantly closer to the US politically and militarily, Bennett stated that Russian-Israeli relations are “special because of common past, present, and future.”
