“The Prime Minister of Israel, Mr. Bennett, is trying to find a way of holding talks. And we are grateful for this. We are grateful for his efforts, so that sooner or later we will begin to have talks with Russia, possibly in Jerusalem,” said Zelensky.
Israeli Prime Minister Bennett said: “We are managing this crisis sensitively and are striking a balance among a range of complex considerations. Israel is extending its hand to help with the crisis in Ukraine in a range of different and diverse channels. We are managing this regrettable crisis in a sensitive, generous and responsible way, while striking a balance among the various complex considerations.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Sunday night thanked Israel after criticizing it in an address to Knesset members earlier in the day.
“Of course, Israel has its interests, strategy to protect its citizens. We understand all of it,” Zelensky said in a video posted on social media.
“The Prime Minister of Israel, Mr. Bennett, is trying to find a way of holding talks. And we are grateful for this. We are grateful for his efforts, so that sooner or later we will begin to have talks with Russia, possibly in Jerusalem,” he said..
“That’s the right place to find peace. If possible,” the Ukrainian president said.
He added, “Russian propagandists have a tough task today,” he added, “because for the first time in history, a president of a foreign nation spoke on video recording in the Knesset and to the whole nation of Israel… the president of Ukraine, who is accused of Nazism in Russia.”
His remarks came after his address to the Knesset members were welcomed with mixed feelings with some MKs criticizing him for invoking the Holocuast and comparing the plight of the Ukrainians under Russian attacks tot that of Jews under the Nazis in WWII.
“We are in different countries and in completely different conditions. But the threat is the same: for both us and you, the total destruction of the people, state, culture. And even of the names: Ukraine, Israel,’’ he said in his address.
He quoted former Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir, who was born in Kyiv, saying: “We intend to remain alive. Our neighbours want to see us dead. This is not a question that leaves much room for compromise.”
He connected past atrocities committed by the Nazis in Babi Yar, where Russian missiles now strike, and recent strikes on the city of Uman, a site of Jewish pilgrimage to the tomb of Rabbi Nachman of Breslov.
Zelensky continued: “Everyone in Israel knows that your missile defence is the best. It is powerful. Everyone knows that your weapon is strong. Everyone knows you’re doing great. You know how to defend your state interests, the interests of your people. And you can definitely help us protect our lives, the lives of Ukrainians, the lives of Ukrainian Jews.’’
He asked, “Why we can’t get weapons from you. Or why Israel has not imposed strong sanctions against Russia. Why it doesn’t put pressure on Russian business ?”
In a reaction to Zelensky’s remarks, Israeli Prime Minister Bennett said: “We are managing this crisis sensitively and are striking a balance among a range of complex considerations. Israel is extending its hand to help with the crisis in Ukraine in a range of different and diverse channels. We are managing this regrettable crisis in a sensitive, generous and responsible way, while striking a balance among the various complex considerations. The Jewish people and the Israeli public can be proud of the contribution and aid from the State of Israel to the citizens of Ukraine.”
Foreign Minister Yair Lapid reiterated his condemnation of the attack on Ukraine and thank President Zelensky for sharing his feelings and the plight of the Ukrainian people with members of the Knesset and the government. ‘’We will continue to assist the Ukrainian people as much as we can and will never turn our backs to the plight of people who know the horrors of war,” he said.
Communications Minister Yoaz Hendel said: “I appreciate the Ukrainian president, and support the Ukrainian people in heart and deed, but the terrible history of the Holocaust cannot be rewritten. A genocide that was carried out on Ukrainian soil as well. The war is awful, but the comparison to the atrocities of the Holocaust and the final solution is an outrage.”
Yuval Steinitz, MK from the Likud said: “The saying goes that one shouldn’t judge a person when in his time of need, but had the speech that was given by Zelensky, the Jewish president of Ukraine, been given during normal times, we would say that it borders on Holocaust denial. War is always terrible, and the shelling and territorial conquests are unbearable for the Ukrainian people, but any comparison between a regular war, as awful as it might be, and the annihilation of millions of Jews in the gas chambers as the final solution, is an absolute distortion of history.”
Efrat Rayten, MK from the Labour party, said: “It was a complex situation, not only because of the constraints of a Zoom call, but also because of the stern remarks by Ukraine President Zelenskyy. As hard as it is, we must not forget that the president represents a country and millions of citizens who are fighting for their lives.”
