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Source: http://www.israelhayom.com/site/newsletter_opinion.php?id=5733
Russia Is Back in the Region
(Israel Hayom) Zalman Shoval - Without minimizing the importance of the agreement to rid the Syrian regime of its chemical weapons arsenal or the American contribution to the deal, one gets the impression that the Kremlin was at the wheel. Perceptions, primarily in the Middle East, are sometimes more important than facts, and America in our region today looks like it is following; compared to Russia, which was able to dictate - and it does not matter that objectively the U.S. is much more powerful than Russia. Israel cannot ignore the potential consequences that Russia's increased diplomatic standing will have pertaining to crucial diplomatic matters on Israel's agenda. Israel has differences of opinion with Russia on several issues, in particular over Moscow's turning a blind eye, at least on the surface, to the dangers posed by Iran's nuclear program, but there are also quite a few agreements, either declared or veiled. Israel is certainly not indifferent, for example, to one of the major trends in Russian diplomacy, which is to stymie the expansion of Islam in the world, particularly in its close vicinity. In other areas as well, relations between Moscow and Jerusalem are doing exceedingly well and serve both parties. However, Russia also understands that Israel will stay unequivocally tied to America and the American people (and to the Jewish community there). The writer served twice as Israel's Ambassador to the U.S.