President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Mr Prime Minister, colleagues, welcome once again.
Thank you for accepting the invitation. I am particularly thankful to you for agreeing to hold today's meeting here. It is symbolic, because these days the entire world is remembering the victims of the Holocaust.
As you are aware, our country was strongly affected, and almost every family lost someone. Among the Jews murdered by the Nazis, there were many citizens of the Soviet Union, Russia. They also made a vast contribution to the victory over the Nazis.
As usual, we will use this opportunity to discuss our bilateral relations and the situation in the region.
Mr Prime Minister, we are very pleased to see you. Welcome!
Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu (retranslated): Thank you very much, Mr President,
I appreciate your invitation and the fact that you decided to personally attend this ceremony, at this place, on these days. This reflects our common fight against that terrible evil witnessed by humanity, and the enormous price paid by my people, the Jewish people, and the Russian people, in this fight. An enormous sacrifice – 20 million Russian lives and 6 million Jewish lives. The heroism of the Red Army which led to the defeat of Nazism.
The exhibition that we saw here, which is devoted to the uprising in the Sobibor death camp, had a strong impression on me. An uprising led by a Jew, a Red Army officer. He successfully led the uprising and the escape to freedom against all odds.
I believe that one of the main lessons of the history of the Nazis’ rise to power and their defeat is that it is necessary to stop such evil before it is too late. This is our goal today.
This is what I want to discuss with you today, as well as the events unfolding in the region, our common efforts, promoting security and stability in the region, and, of course, the expansion of bilateral relations between our two countries, Israel and Russia.
Our conversations and meetings, which we hold from time to time, undoubtedly do a lot for security and stability, and I am sure this will remain the case in the future.
Vladimir Putin: Thank you.
<…>