The talks will be the first meeting in Moscow between Putin and Netanyahu since the downing last September of a Russian warplane in Syria -- an incident for which Moscow blamed Israel at the time.
According to the Israeli Broadcasting Authority, talks will focus largely on developments in Syria with an emphasis on Israel’s continued opposition to Iran’s military presence in the war-weary country.
Last September, several Israeli F-16s entered Syrian airspace with a view to striking Syrian military targets in the northwestern Latakia province.
When Syria’s S-200 air-defense system responded to the breach, a Russian Il-20 military plane was struck by a missile, destroying the aircraft and killing all 15 servicemen on board.
Shortly afterward, Moscow -- blaming Israel for the deadly incident -- announced its decision to provide Damascus with the more advanced S-300 missile-defense system.
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