Yesterday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov accused Ukraine’s Jewish president, Volodymyr Zelensky, of supporting Nazism and asserted that “Hitler also had Jewish blood.” Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid alleged Lavrov’s remarks were “both unforgivable and outrageous.” He also summoned Russia’s ambassador to Israel to explain Lavrov’s allegations. This looks like it could lead to Israel cutting off relations with Russia.
Democratic Israel–unlike almost all other democratic nations in the world–has so far not publicly supported democratic Ukraine in its struggle to survive the brutal assault being inflicted on it by Russian armed forces in their land, a war that began on February 24th.
Russian President Vladimir Putin repeatedly asserts without justification that Ukraine is controlled by neo-Nazis. Yet Ukraine’s fairly-elected president, Zelenskyy, is Jewish and seems to know and respect his religious heritage quite well. In fact, before Zelenskyy became Ukraine’s president, only three years ago, he was an actor and comedian who was quite well known and liked by Ukrainians. And he is being hailed in the free world as a hero to Ukraine for his courage and constant, articulate defense of his beloved nation.
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