Anatoly Viktorov
Moscow was surprised at the summons of Russian ambassador Anatoly Viktorov to the Israeli Foreign Ministry because of his interview with The Jerusalem Post. This was told by the official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry Maria Zakharova, quoted by RIA Novosti.
“The position stated in [the interview] was repeatedly communicated by us to our Israeli colleagues at various levels. All the statements of the Russian ambassador reproduced in the publication correspond to the well-known position of Russia on the Middle East problem, ”the diplomat emphasized.
Zakharova added that Russia positively evaluates the normalization of Israel's relations with its Arab neighbors. At the same time, Moscow believes that the confrontation between the parties only interferes with finding a solution to the settlement of the Arab-Israeli conflict.
On December 9, Viktorov was summoned to the Israeli Foreign Ministry. There he was presented with claims because of the words that Israel's failure to comply with UN resolutions on the conflict with Palestine is a more serious problem for the region than Iran's participation in the wars.
Israel in early July 2020 began preparations for the operation to annex the West Bank. These plans were soon temporarily shelved due to the coronavirus pandemic. After 1967, Israeli settlements were established in Judea and Samaria in the West Bank. The UN Security Council considers these territories occupied, and Israel – disputable.
