Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett met with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Vladimir Vladimirovich PutinOn money – Jobs skyrocketed in February Senate invited to speak with Zelensky on Saturday Night defense and national security: The attack on the Ukrainian nuclear power plant MORE shocked Washington on Saturday in Moscow to discuss Russia’s war with Ukraine.
Bennett’s spokesman said he met with Putin in the Kremlin, after which the Israeli leader spoke by phone with Ukrainian Volodymyr Zelensky, Reuters reported.
An Israeli official said the prime minister is coordinating efforts on the issue with the United States, Germany and France.
The meeting between Bennett and Putin lasted three hours, but no major breakthroughs have yet been reported. According to an Israeli official, Bennett discussed how the fighting in Ukraine has affected the Jewish community as a whole.
According to The New York Times, Zelensky and Bennett are the only two Jews in the world to head a government.
To meet with Putin, Bennett broke Shabbat to travel to Moscow, but his office said it was permitted by religious law because the purpose of the meeting was to save human life, Reuters reported.
Before arriving at the meeting, Bennett delivered a speech by French President Emmanuel Macron.
Emmanuel Jean-Michel MacronThe Hill’s Morning Report – Russia’s war against Ukraine prevents Macron from running for re-election in France
Israel has declared its support for Ukraine during the invasion and is sending medical supplies, but said it would not cut ties with Russia as the country hopes to find a solution to the conflict, Reuters notes.
Along with the Ukraine conflict, Bennett and Putin discussed the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran.
After the meeting in Russia, Bennett traveled to Germany to meet Chancellor Olaf Scholz.