A meeting of representatives of the Russian and Israeli General Staffs will take place Wednesday in the Russian capital within the framework of Netanyahu’s agreements with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
"This evening an IDF [Israel Defense Forces] delegation will leave for Moscow, according to my agreement with President Putin. It will explain our operation here [in Lebanon] and it will make it unequivocally clear that Israel maintains its right and obligation to act against an Iranian military entrenchment in Syria, also a Hezbollah entrenchment in Syria and that of Iran's proxies here, in their attempt to dig tunnels under the border," Netanyahu said as quoted by his press service.
The prime minister made these remarks during a trip to the border with Lebanon, where the IDF is engaged in operation to neutralize the Hezbollah tunnel threat.
"We will do everything necessary and I estimate that this message will be passed on very clearly to our Russian counterparts," the prime minister added.
According to the IDF, members of the Israeli delegation will inform the Russian counterparts about the ongoing military operation dubbed the Northern Shield, as well as discuss ways to improve the interaction in the wake of the incident with Russian Il-20 military plane that was shot down by a Syrian air defense system targeting an Israeli F-16 jet engaged in airstrikes on Latakia.
Russia has been involved in military operations in Syria since 2015, after receiving a request from the Syrian government. Israel has been conducting airstrikes in Syria without permission from the Syrian government, but is justifying its actions by stressing the need to counter Iran's military presence there.
