Netanyahu’s diplomacy is finally paying off

Israel has managed to drive a wedge between Iran and Russia in Syria. This will secure its northern border

Israel has had a channel to Moscow since Russia first established its air presence in Syria in fall 2015. This channel though was primarily to warn Russia’s military when Israel launched airstrikes on convoys and shipments of arms to Hezbollah.

On Thursday Israeli defense minister Avigdor Lieberman flew to Moscow to meet with his Russian counterpart. Following meetings, Lieberman tweeted: “The state of Israel appreciates Russia’s understanding of oursecurityconcerns,particularlyregarding the situation at our northern border.”

So far, that understanding has resulted in a new policy from Russia toward Israeli airstrikes in Syria. Russia has the ability to protect Iranian forces with its own air force and air defense systems in Syria, but it has opted not to use them to stop Israel.

Elliott Abrams, a deputy national security adviser in the George W Bush administration, told me that Netanyahu has been explaining to Putin “the threat to Israeli security posed by Iran’s presence in Syria.”

“We see there is a gap between Iranian and Russian interests, and Netanyahu has been explaining that,” Abrams said. “It seems to be coming to fruition now.”

It’s too soon to say whether Israel’s diplomacy with Russia will result in the removal of Iran and its allied militias from Syria altogether. A senior Israeli diplomat warned me this week that no agreement has been made for all of Syria, and that Israel would not be satisfied with a partial agreement to only keep Iranian forces away from its border.