Israel’s Response to the Russian Invasion of Ukraine

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Israel’s Response to the Russian Invasion of Ukraine

Israel’s Public Stance on the Russian Invasion: 

• Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. 
• On Thursday, February 24, Lapid tweeted, “The Russian attack on Ukraine is a serious violation of international order, Israel condemns the attack, is ready and prepared to provide humanitarian aid to the citizens of Ukraine. Israel is a war-torn country, war is not the way to resolve conflicts.”
• However, Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennet’s initial public statements did not criticize Russia directly. He instead vaguely communicated that “these are difficult, tragic times.”
• On Monday, February 28, Lapid declared Israel’s decision to co-sponsor a United Nations Resolution condemning the Russian invasion. 
• Israel, despite U.S. President Biden’s request, initially refrained from co-sponsoring this resolution in an effort to maintain neutrality throughout the conflict.
• Israel has yet to enact sanctions against Russia. 

Why Aim for Neutrality?

• Israel is a strategic partner of the United States and has received bilateral assistance and missile defense funding from the U.S. From this perspective, Israel is Western-aligned and thus incentivized to pose a pro-Ukrainian stance on the conflict. 
• According to the Congressional Research Service, “Israel is the largest cumulative recipient of U.S. foreign assistance since World War II.”
• The Biden administration requested $3.3 billion in Foreign Military Assistance for Israel in fiscal year 2022. 
• Ukraine is home to 200,000 Jews who could migrate to Israel and obtain Israeli citizenship under the Law of Return. 
• Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lior Haya conveyed, “We’ll be happy to receive any Jew that wants to immigrate from Ukraine to Israel.” 
• Simultaneously, Israel coordinates with Russia on select military operations, particularly in Syria.
• Israel shares its northern border with Syria, where Russia has served as an integral partner in backing the Syrian government in effort to combat militant and terrorist activity since 2015.
• In Syria, there are Iranian backed fighters, such as Hezbollah, who also support the Syrian government but pose a threat to Israel’s national security. 
• As a result, Israel must liaise with Russia when the Israeli Air Force conducts airstrikes against these Iranian-backed fighters. The strikes are often aimed at disrupting the transportation route of weapons intended to be used against Israel. 
• Due to these geopolitical considerations, Israel strives to remain on positive terms with conflicting nations, each of whom serve as a major player in Israel’s international and security objectives.