MOSCOW — Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu paid a two-day visit this week to Israel — his first as the top Russian military commander. On Oct. 16, Shoigu met in Tel Aviv with Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman and the Israel Defense Forces' Chief of General Staff Gadi Eizenkot. On Tuesday, he was hosted by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Hours before Shoigu landed in Tel Aviv, the Israeli air force destroyed a Syrian army anti-aircraft battery in an alleged retaliation to Damascus firing a missile at Israeli planes while they were on a reconnaissance mission over neighboring Lebanon. Israel said it informed Russia of the incident “in real-time mode” and “comprehensively briefed” Shoigu to alleviate a potentially negative response from Moscow.

Unlike Shoigu’s snap visit to Damascus in September, which was shrouded in mystery, on this trip to Israel he was clear about his purpose: “Besides the military and military-technical cooperation [between our countries], the main issue remains the fight against terrorism, as well as the [general] situation in the region. Separately, we’d like to discuss everything that has to do with Syria. [Russia’s] operation there is coming to its end. There are several points that require urgent solutions and discussion of further prospects. … There is a lot to talk about,” said Shoigu in his opening statement at the meeting with Liberman.

In response, Liberman said Israel “values its relations with Russia for the sincere, candid dialogue [between the two]. … I’m positive that this is the way to solve all the problems.” He spoke first in Russian and then repeated his remarks in Hebrew.