Russia’s President Vladimir Putin has hosted the Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett for the pair’s first in-person meeting.
The Friday meeting in Russia’s Black Sea resort of Sochi marks the first in-person talks between the two world leaders.
The talks mainly focused on Iran and the situation in Syria.
Welcoming Bennett, Putin hailed Russian-Israeli ties as “unique” and praised the “very deep connection between our peoples”.
“We will … talk about the situation in Syria, and the efforts to halt the Iranian military nuclear programme,” Bennett said in Sochi.
Putin said that Russia, which launched its military campaign in Syria in 2015, has been “making efforts” to restore the country’s statehood and strengthen it.
There was “common ground and opportunities for cooperation” with Israel concerning the situation there, he said, especially “in terms of the fight against terrorism”.
Two days ago, Russia has hosted an international conference in an attempt to stabilise the situation in Afghanistan since Taliban took power in mid-August.
Officials from 10 countries including China and Pakistan have attended the Moscow conference.
Representatives from India, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan are also attending.
The talks mark one of the Taliban’s most significant international meetings since it assumed control of Afghanistan.
