North Korea's recent nuclear test has given a boost to Israel's campaign against Iran's nuclear plans, and it will be a major topic in the talks between Olmert and the Russian officials.
Russia has long been a supporter of Iran's nuclear program, and Russian companies remain the main contractors for the nuclear reactor at Bushehr in southern Iran. The two countries signed an agreement just a month ago stipulating a time-frame for the launch of the Bushehr nuclear reactor in southern Iran next year, beginning with the supply of fuel in March 2007.
Israel has long asked Russia - largely in vain - to rein in Iran's nuclear ambitions. "The Russian government's reluctance to react to Israel's security concerns is no surprise," writes Mark Katz in the Winter 2005 edition of Middle East Quarterly. "After all, the threat posed by a nuclear-armed Iran to Russia itself is not sufficient to affect a change in Russian policy." Katz explains that Russian commentators say that the sale of nuclear reactors to Iran is vital to the survival of the Russian atomic energy industry.
Recently, 550 Russian military engineers arrived in Beirut, Lebanon, to rebuild several bridges destroyed by the IDF in the recent war. In addition, Jane's Defense Weekly reports that a Russian listening post on the Syrian side of the Golan Heights provided Hizbullah with a continuous supply of intelligence on Israeli army movements throughout the five-week long war.
Olmert will also discuss the leak of Russian-made weapons to Hizbullah. It has been reported that most of the IDF casualties in the recent war were caused by Russian-made anti-tank missiles that made their way to Hizbullah via Syria. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov announced, on the eve of Olmert's visit, that his country intends to tighten its supervision over the countries to which it exports arms.
Olmert will take part on Thursday in celebrations commemorating the 15th anniversary of the re-establishment of diplomatic relations between Russia and Israel, following the breakdown of such relations just after the Six Day War in 1967. The festivities are to be held in the Maryina Roscha Moscow Jewish Community Center.
Russia has long been a supporter of Iran's nuclear program, and Russian companies remain the main contractors for the nuclear reactor at Bushehr in southern Iran. The two countries signed an agreement just a month ago stipulating a time-frame for the launch of the Bushehr nuclear reactor in southern Iran next year, beginning with the supply of fuel in March 2007.
Israel has long asked Russia - largely in vain - to rein in Iran's nuclear ambitions. "The Russian government's reluctance to react to Israel's security concerns is no surprise," writes Mark Katz in the Winter 2005 edition of Middle East Quarterly. "After all, the threat posed by a nuclear-armed Iran to Russia itself is not sufficient to affect a change in Russian policy." Katz explains that Russian commentators say that the sale of nuclear reactors to Iran is vital to the survival of the Russian atomic energy industry.
Recently, 550 Russian military engineers arrived in Beirut, Lebanon, to rebuild several bridges destroyed by the IDF in the recent war. In addition, Jane's Defense Weekly reports that a Russian listening post on the Syrian side of the Golan Heights provided Hizbullah with a continuous supply of intelligence on Israeli army movements throughout the five-week long war.
Olmert will also discuss the leak of Russian-made weapons to Hizbullah. It has been reported that most of the IDF casualties in the recent war were caused by Russian-made anti-tank missiles that made their way to Hizbullah via Syria. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov announced, on the eve of Olmert's visit, that his country intends to tighten its supervision over the countries to which it exports arms.
Olmert will take part on Thursday in celebrations commemorating the 15th anniversary of the re-establishment of diplomatic relations between Russia and Israel, following the breakdown of such relations just after the Six Day War in 1967. The festivities are to be held in the Maryina Roscha Moscow Jewish Community Center.