Russia must stop Iran from developing nuclear weapons, Knesset Speaker Reuven Rivlin told chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee for the Federation Council of Russia Mikhail Margelov on Monday.
Margelov and a delegation of Russian senators visited the Knesset for a joint meeting with the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense committee.
Rivlin told the group that Iran sees Israel as the symbol of Islam’s war with the West, and that the world must take Tehran’s threats seriously.
He added that a nuclear Iran is a danger not only for Israel, but for the entire world.
“I have no doubt that Russia has the power to stop Iran’s nuclear armament,” Rivlin said. “Even if there is an economic price, you cannot aid Islamic fundamentalists who say they seek to erase Israel from the map.”
Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee chairman Shaul Mofaz (Kadima) said that Israel is unsatisfied with Russia’s policies on Iran, and must make a change.
Mofaz also discussed Syria, pointing out that Syrian President Bashar Assad massacres his citizens each day, and his rule is coming to an end.
The Kadima MK expressed concern about weapons being sent from Russia to Syria, which harm Israel’s security, and called on Russia to protect the regional balance of power.
Margelov responded that terror and fundamentalism put the whole world in danger, and that Russia does not want a nuclear Iran. At the same time, he said “Eastern chess is just as important as the West’s punches,” in reference to his country’s refusal to sanction Tehran.