Israel seeks Russian assurance Syrian pullout not to boost Hezbollah

Israeli President Reuven Rivlin wants Russia to provide guarantees that the withdrawal of its air and naval forces from Syria will not result in Iran or the Lebanon-based Shiite Hezbollah militant group gaining power in the war-torn country, a source in Israel’s delegation to Moscow said, according to Sputnik.

The Israeli leader is scheduled to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin later in the day as part of his official visit to Russia for talks on humanitarian and economic cooperation.

"Rivlin will ask the Russian side [for] assurance[s] that the withdrawal of its troops from Syria will not be accompanied by a strengthening of Iran and Hezbollah there," the source said.

On Monday, Putin ordered the withdrawal of the main part of the country’s air and naval forces in Syria as they were deemed to have fulfilled the tasks assigned to them.

Source: MENA