Interfax's Interview

Israel is making efforts to simplify visa issuance procedures for Russian citizens

The new Israeli ambassador to Russia, Anna Azari, has granted an interview to Interfax.

Israel and Russia are holding intensive negotiations on possible sales of Russian gas to Israel by Gazprom, Azari said.

"I can't say that we are close to making the final decision now because we don't have the full data," Azari said. "But the dialogue is very intensive, and it has not been suspended, including these days," Azari said, adding that she would "describe the current stage as preliminary."

"This is a very serious and, I would say, momentous step for Israel, because, on the one hand, we have made the decision to switch to gas, but on the other, the only gas supplier to Israel now is Egypt," Azari said.

Therefore, "many in Israel want to see the Russian gas supply project becoming a reality," she said.

"If this project is implemented, it will probably be among the largest in the country's history," she said.

Israel will host a meeting of a joint trade and economic cooperation commission in late November. The Russian part of the commission is led by Information Technology and Communications Minister Leonid Reiman.

"There has been steady growth in trade and economic cooperation, and this is positive. But if you compare it to the real potential of our countries and growth in [Israel's] trade turnover with other countries, I think we are very far not only from optimal but even from normal level of cooperation," Azari said.

Speaking about prospects for military-technological cooperation between Israel and Russia, Azari said, "this is one of the fields in which our countries are maintaining substantial dialogue and having specific projects."

Israel is satisfied with the "serious and positive" response from the Russian authorities to reports of Hezbollah's use of Russian-made weapons against Israel, she said.

"First, I can confirm that there was an exchange of information on this account, whose climax was Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's recent visit to Russia," Azari told Interfax.

"I would also like to note that Russia's reaction was serious and positive," she said.

"I would like to believe that this subject has been settled," she said.

Asked whether Israel was satisfied with the guarantees obtained from Russia, Azari replied, "We highly valued the serious manner with which Russia answered our questions."

Israeli officials said earlier that Hezbollah fighters used Russian weapons they obtained through Syria during the recent Lebanese-Israeli conflict.

Israel does not support the idea of convening an international conference on settling the situation in the Middle East, said Azari.

"Suppose a conference has been held. Can it resolve [problems] in all tracks of the Middle East peace process - the Palestinian, Lebanese, and Syrian ones? We are a small country, and we believe that if something is done simultaneously, we will not resolve problems on any track," Azari said in an interview with Interfax.

On the other hand, "there is strong understanding in Israel that it is necessary to look for ways to advance the peace process," Azari said.

The ambassador also spoke against the idea of expanding the number of international mediators on the Middle East peace process by including, in particular, Egypt and Jordan among them.

"Consulting with Egypt and Jordan is one thing. But including them in the Quartet of mediators [Russia, the U.S., the EU, and the UN] is quite another thing," she said.

"In my view, the issue of enlarging the number of mediators is not on the agenda now," she said.

Israel is making efforts to simplify visa issuance procedures for Russian citizens, the ambassador said.

Despite the government decision to ease procedures, "as sometimes happens, there are quite a lot of problems between a decision and its implementation," Azari said.

The Israeli Embassy in Russia "is having a hard time handling the flow of Russians wishing to visit Israel now," she said.

"We are trying to improve and streamline the visa issuance system so that the flow of Russians could significantly increase," she said.

Azari also said the problem of Russia's ownership of the St. Sergius Metochion in Jerusalem could be settled in the near future.

"As for the St. Sergius Metochion, the matter currently concerns the formal recognition of Russia as its owner," she said.

"We have conducted a series of very substantial negotiations and have entered the phase of offering specific legal wordings. I believe this issue could be resolved in the near future," Azari said.

The St. Sergius Metochion was constructed in downtown Jerusalem at the end of the 19th century near the Russian Ecclesiastical Mission and the Trinity Cathedral. The construction was funded by private donations from Russia. However, the following political events in Russia made it impossible to register the Metochion as Russian property.

The St. Sergius Metochion is among the largest assets ever purchased by Russia in Jerusalem that have yet to be registered by Israel as Russian property.

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