Israel Foreign Minister Eli Cohen stated that the newly sworn-in government would be more reserved regarding the Ukraine crisis, Haaretz reported on Monday.
In his first address, the minister said that "on the Russia-Ukraine issue, we will do one thing for certain – speak less publicly." He stressed that Israel would continue to provide "significant humanitarian assistance" to Ukraine, but refused to comment on Kiev's request for the delivery of defense systems.
Cohen announced he will speak to his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov on Tuesday, while also taking the opportunity to reaffirm his country's strategic partnership with the United States, underlying that "there is no substitute for Israel-US relations."
