Netanyahu, Russia’s Lavrov, chief of General Staff discuss operation in southern Syria

MOSCOW, July 23. /TASS/. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and the Chief of the Russian Armed Forces' General Staff, Gen Valery Gerassimov, have had a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem, in the course of which they discussed the tasks for rounding up the antiterrorist operation in southern Syria and assuring security along the Israeli border. "On July 23, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and the chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, Gen Valery Gerassimov, who is Russia's First Deputy Minister of Defense, had a meeting in West Jerusalem with the Prime Minister of the State of Israel, Binyamin Netanyahu," the ministry said. "In the course of the meeting, they discussed a range of aspects of the Middle East agenda and paid especial attention to the situation in Syria," the report said. "They also mentioned the problems of Palestinian-Israeli peace settlement in the light of talks between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Binyamin Netanyahu on July 11 in Moscow," the ministry said. "They had a detailed discussion of the tasks for rounding up the antiterrorist operation in southern Syria and assuring security along the Israeli-Syrian border, including observance of the 1974 agreement on disengagement of forces." Taking part in the meeting on the Israeli side along with Binyamin Netanyahu were Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman, Chief of the General Staff Gadi Eizenkot, and the chief of the National Security Council, Meir Ben-Shabbat On July 16, President Vladimir Putin told a news conference in Helsinki Russia had interest in ensuring tranquility in the Golan Heights area and Israel’s security. He said that, following the defeat of terrorists in the southwest of Syria the situation there should be brought in full compliance with the 1974 agreement on the disengagement of Israeli and Syrian troops. Netanyahu told a weekly meeting of the Israeli cabinet earlier on Monday he planned taking up regional issues with the high-rank Russian officials. He stressed Israel’s insistence on honoring the agreement on disengagement of forces that was observed over several decades before the outbreak of the civil war in Syria. He said once again that Israel would continue counteracting any attempts on the part of Iran and its allies to get entrenched in southern Syria. Read more