Putin apologized for Lavrov’s words

Following the words of Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov about Adolf Hitler’s Jewish heritage, a diplomatic scandal has erupted.

Photo: Internet

Russian President Vladimir Putin apologized to Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett for the words of Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. This was reported by the Israeli Prime Minister’s office.

“They discussed the statements made by Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov. The Prime Minister accepted President Putin’s apology for Lavrov’s words and thanked him for clarifying the President’s attitude towards the Jewish people and the memory of the Holocaust,” the statement said.

Earlier, in an interview with the Italian television company Mediaset, Lavrov said that Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky “makes the argument: how can there be Nazification if he is Jewish.” Lavrov countered that Adolf Hitler “also had Jewish blood,” and that “it absolutely means nothing.” He also added that “the wise Jewish people say that the most ardent anti-Semites are usually Jews.”

Bennett called Lavrov’s words “an unforgivable and outrageous statement” that does not correspond to reality and carries a misleading message.

Russian Ambassador Anatoly Viktorov was summoned to the Israeli Foreign Ministry for clarification regarding the statement made by the Russian Foreign Minister.

The Kremlin did not deny but also did not confirm Putin’s apology.

After Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the Israeli government has attempted to play a mediating role between Russia and Ukraine and to organize negotiations between the presidents of the two countries, but apparently so far without success.