Israel shares an uncomfortable geopolitical stage with Russia

SHARON OFFENBERGER: Messy Mediterranean gas field deals and tacit co-operation in Syria have made Israel reluctant to be openly critical of Putin

WHO HAS THE energy for geo-politics? Israel does.

There has been a strong media focus on Israel’s role in evacuating Jews from an increasingly likely war in Ukraine. In the meantime, only a few handfuls of Ukrainian Jews have chosen to “escape” to Israel.

Although officials have cautiously backed Ukraine, and its biggest ally - the United States – Israel nonetheless is walking a fine line. Its friendship with President Putin is, among other things, crucial to its ability to hit Hezbollah targets in Syria. IDF “operations” in Syria, rarely publicly admitted, are only possible with Russia’s permission, which has a military base and political capital with Israel's enemies there. 

The showdown between Russia and the West over Ukraine is full of diplomatic complications which, like most geo-political crises, feeds speculation and rumour mills. Is it NATO, Russian disinformation or China pulling the strings? At one point Israel reportedly offered to mediate between the sides, a skill one can only imagine it learned from years of sitting through “marathon talks” and “shuttle diplomacy”.

But as Israel punches above its weight, or at least land size, on the world stage, it  is enmeshed  in what is now referred to as “energy diplomacy”.

Currently around 40% of European Union’s natural gas supply comes from Russia via the Nord Stream pipeline that runs under the Baltic Sea to Germany. Europe has seen record high gas prices over its winter and an increasing interest in purchasing liquified natural gas (LNG) from the United States. But no, this conflict is not about gas exports. Or is it?

For years, European countries and the EU have been seeking greater energy security, which not only means more renewables, but also, less dependence on Russia. The EU has had sanctions against Russia in place since 2014 in response to its destabilisation of Ukraine and annexation of Crimea and Sevastopol.