Not for broadcast: initiative to supply arms to Kiev hangs in Israel
The Israeli government is not discussing the transfer to Ukraine of Russian weapons allegedly seized by the military from Hezbollah and Hamas units. This was announced to Izvestia by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office and parliament. The initiative was put forward by Deputy Foreign Minister Sharen Haskel, but still in the position of a Knesset deputy. Now Dan Iluz is responsible for promoting the bill, but his powers have recently been drastically reduced. Since the beginning of the Ukrainian conflict, Israel has not supplied offensive weapons to Kiev, even despite close ties with the US and criticism from the Ukrainian leadership. Whether the Jewish state can change its position with the arrival of Trump - in the material of "Izvestia".
How is the proposal to transfer Russian weapons to Kiev progressing?
Among pro-Western countries or those that have at least close relations with the United States, Israel is one of the few states that does not provide comprehensive support to Ukraine and maintains a relatively restrained position on its conflict with Russia. Against this background, a recent statement by Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Sharen Haskel seemed very resonant. The politician offered to hand over to Kiev Russian weapons allegedly seized by the Israeli military from units of the Lebanese Shiite movement Hezbollah and the Palestinian movement Hamas, at least that's what was written in the local newspaper The Times of Israel. At the same time, such a high-profile statement has received no promotion at the government level.
- I am not familiar with such a proposal. In any case, the spoils of war captured by the Israel Defense Forces are at the disposal of the military, and their further use will be decided by the relevant structures, not by Foreign Ministry officials or parliamentarians," Dmitry Gendelman, an adviser to Israel's prime minister, told Izvestia.
At first glance, it may seem that there is simply a lack of proper communication within the country's government. However, it is unlikely that this is the reason. As Izvestia found out, the proposal to transfer allegedly Russian weapons to Ukraine was submitted to the Knesset (the Israeli parliament), but Haskel did it while still a deputy, and from the opposition - from the party "Tikva Hadasha" ("New Hope"). However, after the recent changes in the Israeli Cabinet amid the escalating conflict in the Middle East, Haskel took the post of Deputy Foreign Minister. Accordingly, she can no longer introduce or promote legislative initiatives. Instead of her, the bill is being supervised by Knesset member Dan Iluz, his office told Izvestia.
By the way, Iluz has not had the best reputation lately and his powers have been significantly reduced. In early November, it became known that he lost his seat in two Knesset committees at once - on foreign affairs and defense, as well as on the economy. According to the official version, Iluz was removed because of his inappropriate remarks about discipline in the ruling coalition and "his behavior." He is also banned from introducing bills for a month and a half. At least there have been no discussions about a possible arms transfer to Ukraine, a spokesman for the lawmaker told Izvestia.
- The proposal has been submitted to the Knesset, but there has been no discussion on the issue yet. At the moment, the government has not given an official response to the proposal," he said.
That said, however, the situation should not be underestimated. Dan Iluz represents the Likud (Consolidation), which is Benjamin Netanyahu's party, and Sharen Haskel is not actively promoting opposition views as deputy foreign minister. Another curious detail: after Netanyahu dismissed Defense Minister Yoav Galant because of a "crisis of confidence" amid Israel's struggle with Hamas and Hezbollah, the latter was replaced by Foreign Minister Yisrael Katz - the vacated chair of Israel's chief diplomat Netanyahu offered to Gideon Saar, Haskel's former "chief" in Tikva Hadasha, and now in the country's foreign ministry. Saar not only founded the opposition party, but has actively criticized Netanyahu, for example, for his previous attempts to fire the same Galant back in early 2023. This fall, Saar said that at "the present time it is important to strengthen Israel, its government, its unity and cohesion." Already the final departure of the disgraced Galant in November, however, Saar did not comment.
Will Israel supply weapons to Ukraine
It is important to emphasize that despite initiatives in the Knesset and tangible changes in the Cabinet, Israel has not yet supplied Ukraine with any offensive weapons. Although its position on the Ukrainian conflict cannot be called neutral either. Thus, the country's ambassador to Russia, Simona Halperin, who took office in 2024, almost immediately emphasized that Russia was critical of the Israeli army's military operation in the Gaza Strip, while Israel was critical of the special operation in Ukraine. The Russian Foreign Ministry later called a number of the ambassador's high-profile statements unacceptable and provocative. Nevertheless, the diplomat noted that despite sharp disagreements, there is no alternative to friendly relations between the two countries.
In June 2023, a scandal even broke out on this ground. The head of the office of the President of Ukraine Andriy Yermak accused the leadership of Israel of inaction. In response, Netanyahu drew attention to the fact that anti-tank complexes, which are supplied by Western countries, are spotted in the Middle East, where Israel's interests are affected - the equipment can fall into the hands of the country's regional adversaries, such as Iran. In fact, the head of the Israeli Cabinet accused Kiev of arms smuggling. In addition, Netanyahu noted the ties with Russia. "Our pilots are flying alongside Russian pilots in the Syrian skies. And I think it's important that we maintain our freedom of action against Iran's attempts to gain a foothold on our northern border," the politician emphasized. In his opinion, the situation in which the Jewish state finds itself is different from that of any Western country supporting Ukraine. Israel, by the way, for the same reasons has not transferred to Kiev the Iron Dome air defense systems, without which it is difficult to imagine the defense of the Jewish state against the background of the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.
It is worth noting that the approach of the Israeli government has not changed, despite the position of the US administration still in office. President Joe Biden is a supporter of a tough confrontation with Russia. However, Israel will not change its views and with the arrival of Donald Trump in January 2025, an expert on the Middle East and Israel, Alexander Kargin, is sure.
- This is extremely unlikely and difficult to imagine, even when Trump is in power. At least if we proceed from his current rhetoric: Trump is determined to wind down the Ukrainian conflict and to negotiate. Accordingly, Israel, as a country that has a certain dependence on the United States, will definitely not go against the current, that is, in this case, against the position of the new White House leadership," the expert told Izvestia.
As for the proposal to transfer Russian weapons to Ukraine, the expert pointed out that about 70-80% of legislative initiatives in the Knesset do not lead to anything. Although this does not mean that Kiev will not receive any assistance at all. For example, Israel is known to have transferred to Ukraine an early warning system for air attacks and equipment related to nuclear security. The New York Times, citing an unnamed Ukrainian official, also wrote that Israel was providing Kiev with intelligence data necessary to combat drones.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
