• Military Menu                       

• Introduction
• Systems
• Facilities
• Agencies
• Industry
• Operations
• Countries
• Hot Documents
• News
• Reports
• Policy
• Budget
• Congress
• Links

• WMD
• Intelligence
• Homeland Security
• Space

Israel - World War III.2

According to polls, 76% of the Israeli population supported Ukraine after the great invasion, while only 10% supported Russia. Among voters of right-wing parties, support for Russia was the highest, but no more than 13%. The electorate of the center-left and left-wing parties clearly took the side of Ukraine - 87% and 90%, respectively.

On 05 February 2022 Israeli Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper reported Israel had suspended participation in a deal on the transfer of Iron Dome missile defense system to Kiev signed between the United States and Ukraine, fearing damaging bilateral relations with Russia amid tensions on the Ukrainian border. According to the newspaper, since last summer Israel has taken a series of steps trying to prevent the deal and managed to remove the issue of Iron Dome transfer to Kiev from the agenda. Last year, media reported that the US Congress included an amendment to the 2022 defence bill that makes the sale or transfer of the Iron Dome system to Ukraine possible. Iron Dome is a joint Israeli-US venture that cannot be sold to a third party without the consent of both developer countries. In spring 2021, the Ukrainian government officially appealed to the Biden administration requesting to transfer Patriot missiles and the Iron Dome missile defence system to Ukraine.

On 24 February 2022, Russia began a military operation in Ukraine, "responding to calls for help from the breakaway republics of Donetsk and Lugansk". The Russian Defence Ministry said initially that the operation is targeting "Ukrainian military infrastructure only". It took Israel hours to decide how to react . But on 25 February 2022 Israel took sides. "The Russian attack on Ukraine is a severe violation and Israel condemns it", said Israel's Foreign Minister Yair Lapid.

The Israeli government made efforts to avoid the country becoming a detour for anti-Russia sanctions, Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid said on 14 March 2022. "Israel will not be a route to bypass sanctions imposed on Russia by the United States and other Western countries. The Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs is coordinating the issue together with partners, including the Bank of Israel, the Finance Ministry, the Economy Ministry, the Airports Authority, the Energy Ministry, and others".

Israel called for an end to fighting in Ukraine and will do everything it can to "assist mediation efforts, to stop the shooting and restore peace," Lapid said. "We are working together with our greatest ally, the United States, and our European friends, to prevent the continuation of this tragedy," he added. Lapid made the statement after meeting with Slovakian Foreign Minister Ivan Korcok in Bratislava. The ministers have discussed the continuation of cooperation at the Vysne Nemecke crossing between Ukraine and Slovakia to help Jews and Israelis escape from conflict zones, the foreign ministry said.

Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid warned Russia 24 July 2022 against shutting down an agency that processes the immigration of Jews to Israel, saying the move would have a serious impact on bilateral ties. Lapid told a meeting of senior officials on July 24 that closing the offices of the Jewish Agency for Israel would be a "serious event that would affect relations".

Russia's Justice Ministry had demanded that the Russian branch of the agency be shut down, and Moscow's Basmanny district court has scheduled a hearing on the ministry's request for July 28. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said the Justice Ministry request came after the organization violated Russian laws. He denied that Moscow wanted to prevent more "bright minds" from leaving Russia for Israel. The Jerusalem Post cited a top Israeli diplomatic official as saying that the Russian ministry's request is based on allegations that the agency, also known as Sohnut, "illegally collected info about Russian citizens."

On October 24, 2022, Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz said in a telephone conversation with Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov that Israel would help Ukraine with humanitarian aid, but would not provide weapons .

Russia warned Israel 01 February 2023 against supplying weapons to Ukraine after the regime's premier Benjamin Netanyahu said he was considering military assistance for Kiev. "We say that all countries that supply weapons (to Ukraine) should understand that we will consider these (weapons) to be legitimate targets for Russia's armed forces," Russia's foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told reporters.

Netanyahu said in an interview that he was considering sending military aid to Ukraine, much to the chagrin of the Kremlin. The United States has recently called for more active involvement of Israel in the protracted conflict. Israel could provide assistance to Ukraine such as the US-backed technology of the Iron Dome. Russia had repeatedly condemned Israeli missile attacks on Damascus and elsewhere across the Arab country, and their relationship was likely to develop more strains amid new developments.

On February 5, 2023, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that he would study the possibility of Israel supplying Ukraine with weapons , which had been rejected by the previous Israeli government.

The Israeli government had not made any decisions regarding the supply of lethal weapons to Kiev and continues to provide only humanitarian aid, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on 10 April 2023, commenting on the leak of secret Pentagon documents. US media reported leaked Pentagon documents revealed that Israel could consider scenarios in which it would agree to supply lethal weapons to Ukraine under US pressure. "As for the reports about lethal weapons for Ukraine, I do not know what these reports are based on. We decided to help them in humanitarian matters, in civil defense matters with Tzeva Adom [Israeli missile attack warning system] ... but not the previous government, nor my government, have made decisions about lethal weapons," Netanyahu told reporters.

The government of Benjamin Netanyahu painfully balanced between its voters, Iran, Russia, Ukraine, and the United States. On September 6, an agreement was signed with Russia, and on 07 September 2023, Netanyahu called Zelensky to discuss the safety of Hasidic pilgrims in Uman. The same ones that Russia considers a "sect" that advocates "superiority over all nations and peoples." The Israeli government, in turn, simultaneously called on Hasidim to refrain from traveling to Ukraine, but is allocating 4 million shekels to help religious travelers.

Israel is the only country in the world that has increased the number of flights to Russia after the Russian full-scale invasion-they are already taking their own out. Meanwhile, in July 2022, the Russian Ministry of Justice made its first attempt to liquidate the Jewish agency "Sohnut" in the country. In fact, Moscow can either close down "Sohnut" or give Iran modern SU-35 aircraft: either step would be fatal to relations with Israel.

Israel is working on transferring early warning systems for missile strikes and drone attacks to Ukraine. This was stated 01 March 2024 by the Permanent Representative of Israel to the UN, Gilad Erdan, during the session of the UN General Assembly. The official added that in the first week after the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the Jewish state sent more than 100 tons of "humanitarian equipment" to Ukraine and that "hundreds of Ukrainians were treated in Israeli hospitals and rehabilitation centers." The Israeli diplomat also stated that Iran supplies Russia with drones used in the conflict in Ukraine.

“The map of damnation” and “the map of blessing” were the focus of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s speech at the United Nations 27 September 2024, where he asked the world to choose between his country, which “defends peace and democracy,” as he put it, and other countries that “support terrorism,” such as Iran. In his speech to the UN General Assembly, the Israeli Prime Minister used some props to prove his point, presenting two maps to illustrate what he sees as options in dealing with Iran. He asked the world to choose between the Israeli map of "blessing" for the Middle East, the Indian Ocean and Europe, and the Iranian map of "curse", amid the ongoing war with Hamas and Hezbollah.

He explained that the Israeli "Map of Grace" proposes a trade corridor linking the Indian Ocean, the Middle East, Europe and other countries, while the "Map of Curse" is filled with the beginnings of terrorism, including Iran, Hamas and Hezbollah. The Israeli Prime Minister stressed that the conflicts in the Middle East are a choice between "blessing or damnation" while warning what he described as the "tyrants" of Iran of Israel's ability to defend itself and take revenge. He explained that Iran is Israel's main regional enemy.

Netanyahu said that Grace “shows that Israel and its Arab partners form a land bridge connecting Asia and Europe.” "Now look at this second map," he added, speaking about the cursed map. "It is the cursed map. It is a map of the arc of terror that Iran has created and imposed from the Indian Ocean to the Mediterranean." He continued: “Which of the two maps I showed you will shape our future? Will it be a blessing of peace and prosperity for Israel, our Arab partners, and the rest of the world? Or will it be a curse in which Iran and its proxies spread destruction and chaos everywhere?”

He stressed that "there is no place in Iran that Israel's long arm cannot reach, and this applies to the entire Middle East." As has been the case in the past when Netanyahu uses maps, his map did not identify the West Bank or Gaza, but rather identified all of those territories as Israel.