Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during a cabinet meeting in Jerusalem on August 13, 2017. Dan Balilty / Reuters
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during a cabinet meeting in Jerusalem on August 13, 2017. Dan Balilty / Reuters

Netanyahu, Putin to meet over Syria conflict



Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu will travel to Russia on Wednesday for talks with Russian president Vladimir Putin, mainly focusing on the war in Syria.

The two leaders will meet in the Black Sea resort city of Sochi to "discuss the latest developments in the region," Mr Netanyahu's office said in a statement late Saturday.

Such talks have allowed the two countries to so far avoid any confrontation between their air forces, as Russia conducts airstrikes in support of Syrian president Bashar Al Assad's regime.

Israel has sought to avoid being dragged into the civil war, but has carried out strikes to prevent arms deliveries to the Lebanese militia Hizbollah, which fights alongside the Assad forces.

Israel's army has carried out nearly 100 strikes in the past five years on convoys carrying weapons to militant groups in Syria and elsewhere, former air force commander Amir Eshel told the Haaretz newspaper on Thursday.

In March, Russia's foreign ministry summoned Israel's ambassador over air strikes close to Moscow's forces near the historic Syrian city of Palmyra.

At the time, Israel's intelligence minister Yisrael Katz told AFP that in general, Moscow was not informed of Israeli strikes in Syria ahead of time, even though a "hotline" was set up last year to avoid accidental clashes between the two countries' forces.

FIXTURES

Nov 04-05: v Western Australia XI, Perth
Nov 08-11: v Cricket Australia XI, Adelaide
Nov 15-18 v Cricket Australia XI, Townsville (d/n)
Nov 23-27: 1ST TEST v AUSTRALIA, Brisbane
Dec 02-06: 2ND TEST v AUSTRALIA, Adelaide (d/n)
Dec 09-10: v Cricket Australia XI, Perth
Dec 14-18: 3RD TEST v AUSTRALIA, Perth
Dec 26-30 4TH TEST v AUSTRALIA, Melbourne
Jan 04-08: 5TH TEST v AUSTRALIA, Sydney

Note: d/n = day/night

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