Prime Minister Naftali Bennett spoke Jan. 13 on the phone with Russian President Vladimir Putin. A short statement issued by the Prime Minister’s Office said the leaders discussed security issues and agreed on “continued close cooperation in this area.” The words ‘close cooperation in the area’ likely refer to alleged Israeli air force activity in Syria, where Russia maintains a military presence. Over the past few years, Israel and Syria have established communication channels to coordinate on security issues related to Syrian air space.

Naturally, the statement also addressed the Iranian issue. It said, “Against the backdrop of the nuclear talks in Vienna, the prime minister stressed the importance of a strong and determined stance against Iran’s progress in the nuclear project.”

Since taking office, Bennett has spoken on the phone with Putin a few times and has met him in person once in Sochi on Oct. 22, 2021. The Oct. 22 meeting with Putin was scheduled to take about two hours but eventually lasted almost five, with part of it a private discussion between the leaders (the two men walked together in the garden of the presidential complex toward the seaside). At that meeting, Putin invited Bennett and his wife to visit Saint Petersburg, an invitation he repeated in the Jan. 13 phone call. It should be noted that former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also invested quite a lot of effort at establishing a friendly rapport with Putin.

Jerusalem and Moscow are definitely not on the same page over the Vienna talks. Still, leaders of both countries are evidently making efforts at establishing friendly personal rapport. While Jerusalem does not expect Moscow to suddenly change its stance on Iran and support sanctions against Tehran, it estimates that keeping an open channel of communication on the issue could prove crucial once the parties to the Vienna talks come closer to a deal.