Russia rebukes Israeli occupation of Syria’s Golan Heights as relations sour over Ukraine

As Israeli-Russian relations sour over Ukraine, Moscow censures Tel Aviv’s plans to expand its illegal settlement activity in the occupied Golan Heights, stressing that the Golan is an inalienable part of Syria.

Deputy Russian Ambassador to the UN Dmitry Polyanskiy said on Wednesday that Russia is concerned over Tel Aviv’s announced plans for expanding settlement activity in the occupied Golan Heights.

He said the move directly contradicts the provisions of the 1949 Geneva Convention.

In 1967, Israel waged a full-scale war against Arab territories, during which it occupied a large swathe of Golan and annexed it four years later – a move never recognized by the international community.

In 1973, another war broke out; and a year later a UN-brokered ceasefire came into force, according to which Tel Aviv and Damascus agreed to separate their troops and create a buffer zone in the Heights. However, Israel has over the past several decades built dozens of illegal settlements in Golan in defiance of international calls for the regime to stop its illegal construction activities.

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In a unilateral move rejected by the international community in 2019, former US president Donald Trump signed a decree recognizing Israeli “sovereignty” over Golan.

“We stress Russia’s unchanging position, according to which we do not recognize Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights that are an inalienable part of Syria,” Polyanskiy said.

Last December, Israel has announced that it intends to double the number of its illegal settlements in the Golan, despite an earlier resolution adopted by the UN General Assembly demanding the regime’s full withdrawal from the occupied territory.

The Russian envoy’s remarks, however, came after Israel’s foreign ministry voiced concerns in its first statement on the Russia-Ukraine crisis while refraining from mentioning Russia or President Vladimir Putin.

The statement stated support of Ukraine’s territorial integrity and sovereignty.

“Israel shares the concern of the international community regarding the steps taken in eastern Ukraine and the serious escalation in the situation,” it added.

On Thursday, after Russia launched a “special military operation” against Ukraine, Israel took a stronger position against Moscow, saying “the Russian attack on Ukraine is a violation of the world order and Israel condemns it.”

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“Israel is ready to give humanitarian assistance to Ukraine. Israel knew many wars. War is not the way to solve conflicts,” Israeli foreign minister Yair Lapid said in a statement.

Lapid’s statement marked a significant change in the Israeli position toward the Russia-Ukraine crisis.

Observers had already predicted that the Russia-Ukraine crisis could put Israel in a difficult position, as the regime in Tel Aviv has good relations with both Moscow and Kyiv.

Hours after Lapid’s statement, Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett also spoke about the issue but did not condemn Russia.

“Like everyone else, we pray for peace and calm in Ukraine, and still hope that dialog will lead to a resolution,” Bennett said, with reports saying that Lapid and Bennett “were coordinated” and approved both messages “which were not contradictory but complementary.”

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