Russian President-elect Vladimir Putin to visit Israel in June

Senior official says Putin wants to visit Israel after he is inaugurated on
May 7; Israel is expected to begin preparing for his visit, the date of
which has yet to be formally announced.
By Barak Ravid Haaretz Published 01:37 27.03.12
http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/russian-president-elect-vladimir-putin-to-visit-israel-in-june-1.420873

Russian President-elect Vladimir Putin wants to visit Israel in June, and
has expressed interest in unveiling a monument in Netanya honoring Jewish
Red Army soldiers who fought in World War II, a senior Israeli official told
Haaretz on Monday.

There have been no talks about specific arrangements because Putin has yet
to be inaugurated, the source said. After he is sworn in on May 7, Israel is
expected to begin preparing for his visit, the date of which will be
formally announced, the official said.

Israel is expected to be Putin's second foreign destination after he is
inaugurated on May 7. Putin is due to travel to the United States on May 20
to attend the G8 summit, where he is slated to meet with U.S. President
Barack Obama.

Since Putin was elected president earlier this month, senior Russian
officials have made several requests to the Foreign Ministry regarding
Putin's interest in visiting Israel.

The Russian ambassador to Israel, Sergei Yakovlev, and Russia's deputy
foreign minister, Mikhail Bogdanov, are among those who have made such
requests. Other requests were brought directly to Foreign Minister Avigdor
Lieberman.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called Putin earlier this month to
congratulate him on winning the presidential election. Netanayhu's aides
issued a statement saying the two discussed the Middle East situation and
the Iranian nuclear program.

Netanyahu invited Putin to visit Israel and received an invitation from him
to visit Moscow.

Netanyahu met with Putin in Moscow in February 2010, and the two announced
they would set up a monument in Netanya to commemorate Jewish soldiers who
served in the Red Army during World War II. The monument, designed by three
Russian artists in the shape of a labyrinth, is about to be completed and
Putin would like to unveil it, the Israeli official said.

Putin last visited Israel in April 2005, when Ariel Sharon was prime
minister. The highly irregular visit took place on Passover, with only three
weeks' notice. Israel lobbied unsuccessfully to get the visit postponed.

In January 2011 Russian President Dmitri Medvedev was scheduled to visit
Israel, but the visit was canceled because of a Foreign Ministry workers'
strike here. Medvedev, who was visiting the Middle East, did pay a visit to
Jericho, where he met with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.

Putin won more than 60 percent of the votes in the Russian presidential
election of March 5. Like the Russian parliamentary elections a few weeks
earlier, the presidential election was marred by claims of voter fraud and
problems at the polling stations. Mass anti-Putin rallies took place in
Moscow.

Several reports by international organizations found rampant fraud in the
Russian parliamentary elections, which Putin's party won. U.S. Secretary of
State Hillary Clinton expressed concern over the way the election was
conducted.

A few days after the parliamentary election, Putin met with Foreign Minister
Avigdor Lieberman in Moscow. Lieberman said after the meeting that the
Israeli observers posted in several polling stations in Russia deemed the
elections "fair, free and democratic."