Russian President Vladimir Putin apologized to Prime Minister Naftali Bennett on Thursday for comments made by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov who stated earlier this week that Hitler had "Jewish blood," according to the Prime Minister's Office.
Lavrov also stated that "the biggest antisemites are the Jews themselves" while attacking Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who is Jewish, in an interview with Italian television.
Earlier this week, Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid called Lavrov's statements "unforgivable" and Bennett stated that "lies like these are meant to blame the Jews themselves for the most terrible crimes in history, which were committed against them, and thus free the oppressors of the Jews from their responsibility.”
A readout by the Kremlin did not mention the apology. On Tuesday, the Russian Foreign Ministry claimed that Lapid's comments were "anti-historical" and “explain to a large extent why the current Israeli government supports the neo-Nazi regime in Kyiv.”
Putin and Bennett emphasized the "special significance" of May 9, when Russia and Israel commemorate the victory of Europe and Russia against Nazi Germany, during the conversation on Thursday. The Kremlin stressed that the two countries "carefully preserve the historical truth about the events of those years and honor the memory of all the fallen, including victims of the Holocaust."
