Israeli Prime Minister Bennett meets Scholz after visiting Putin

Afterwards it says thinly: The aim remains to end the war “as quickly as possible”. Israel is being discussed as a mediator – Bennett’s visit to the Kremlin is said to have lasted three hours.

Berlin – After a visit to Moscow, Israel’s Prime Minister Naftali Bennett discussed the Ukraine conflict with Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) in Berlin.

“The focus of the 90-minute conversation was the results of the conversation that the Prime Minister had with Russian President Putin in Moscow on Saturday,” said government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit afterwards. We want to keep in touch on the matter.

The common goal remains to end the war in Ukraine “as soon as possible,” the statement said. “We will work on that with all our might.”

Three hours with Putin

Bennett previously met with Kremlin chief Putin in Moscow on Saturday to discuss the Ukraine war. Government circles in Jerusalem said the talks between Putin and Bennett in the Russian capital lasted three hours. Bennett has coordinated with the US, Germany and France and is “in constant communication with Ukraine”.

According to sources in Jerusalem, Bennett also called Volodymyr Zelenskyy after meeting Putin. On the night of Sunday there was also a telephone conversation between Selenskyj and US President Joe Biden. During the half-hour conversation, Biden underlined the measures taken by the United States, its allies and the private sector “to make Russia bear the costs of its aggression in Ukraine,” the White House said.

Israel as a mediator in discussion

Israel is being discussed as a mediator in the Ukraine war. According to media reports, a few days ago Selenskyj asked Bennett to organize negotiations between Russia and Ukraine in Israel. Israel has good relations with both countries, but also finds itself in a conflict. It does not want to upset its main ally, the United States, but at the same time depends on Moscow’s goodwill for strategic reasons, including in the conflicts with Syria and Iran.

According to Bennett’s office, the meeting with Putin was attended by Israeli housing minister Seew Elkin, who is helping with the translation. Elkin comes from the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv and is considered a Putin expert. He had also always attended meetings between Bennett’s predecessor, Benjamin Netanyahu, and Putin. dpa