Israel, Russia, U.S. to meet in Jerusalem over Iranian presence in Syria

In an “unprecedented diplomatic opportunity” with Russia & the U.S. meeting together with Israeli officials in Jerusalem, Israel hopes to persuade Russia to join a unified effort in ousting Iran from Syria, in order to curtail Tehran’s disruptive influence in the Middle East.

By i24NEWS

 

The United States plans to use a tripartite summit in Jerusalem to persuade Russia to change course on Iran, hoping they can convince Moscow to join the US and Israeli efforts to thwart Tehran’s influence in the Middle East.

Israel, Russia, and the US will convene in Jerusalem at the end of June for a Middle East security summit, an event hailed by US and Israeli officials as an “unprecedented diplomatic opportunity.”

John Bolton, President Trump’s National Security Adviser – Photo: Gage Skidmore/Wikimedia

Washington apparently believes Russia is now more amenable to addressing US and Israeli concerns over Iran’s influence in the Middle East, despite past Russian-Iranian cooperation in Syria to support Bashar al-Assad and his regime forces.

A senior White House official told Al-Arabiya that Washington interprets Moscow’s public participation in the tripartite summit itself as a sign of Russia’s openness to discussing the Iranian presence in Syria.


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“We are certain that the Iranians are very unhappy that this summit is taking place and that the Israelis are hosting the Americans and Russians in Jerusalem. The fact that Russia is prepared to hold such a public meeting is already important and positive,” the official said.

Beyond efforts to prevent unintended military escalation in Syria– where all three countries have been involved militarily, often discordantly– the senior Trump administration official told Reuters that the talks would also aim “to see how we can potentially work together to get rid of the primary irritant in the Middle East, which is the Islamic Republic of Iran.”

 

View original i24news publication at:
https://www.i24news.tv/en/news/international/middle-east/1559716383-us-to-seek-russian-support-on-iran-at-israel-meeting-report