Relations between Russia and Israel strained after Moscow’s top diplomat accuses Jews of anti-Semitism

TEL AVIV – Relations between Israel and Russia came under new pressure after Russia’s foreign minister compared Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskythere is Jew, to Adolf Hitler and accused Jews of anti-Semitism – remarks that Israel condemned on Monday as unforgivable.

Since Russia’s invasion of its neighbor on February 24, Israel has been trying to maneuver between Ukraine, which has a significant Jewish population, and Moscow, which has forces in Syria and has avoided interfering in Israel’s airstrikes in the country.