Russian President Vladimir Putin, right, listens to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during their meeting at the Bocharov Ruchei residence in the Black Sea resort of Sochi, Russia, Tuesday, May 14, 2013. (photo credit: AP/ Maxim Shipenkov)

As Syria continues to implode amidst a bloody civil war, Moscow is increasingly siding with its ally Iran to side with and prop up Bashar al-Assad, the dictator of Damascus. As I’ve reported before, the Russians are reportedly selling advanced weaponry to Syria, including MiG fighter jets, millions of rounds of ammunition, and a state-of-the-art missile system known as the S-300. The Israeli government is so concerned about the S-300 system that Prime Minister Netanyahu has reportedly told the Kremlin that Israel will go to war, if necessary, to prevent that missile system from being delivered, assembled and operationalized in Syria.

Why is Netanyahu so worried about the S-300 system? The Times of Israel reports that “aside from the unique strategic capacities that the S-300 air-defense missiles would afford Syria, putting planes taking off from central Israel and its main international airport within the missiles’ range, Jerusalem also fears that the system could fall into the hands of terror groups like Hezbollah.”

Here are excerpts from the Times’ report on the face-to-face conversation Netanyahu had with Russian Czar Vladimir Putin, just last week:

• Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hinted during his recent meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin that Israel would destroy Syrian S-300 missiles before they became fully operational, Maariv cited Middle Eastern diplomats saying Friday. The reported threat underlined how firmly Israel has sought to pressure Russia to cancel the deal, apparently with some success.
• According to the report, during the meeting between the heads of state earlier this month in the Black Sea city of Sochi, Netanyahu called on Putin to cancel Russia’s transfer of the sophisticated anti-aircraft system to Syrian President Bashar Assad, and indicated that, should the delivery go ahead, Israel would strike the missiles before they became operational.
• The report came the same day that American and German officials warned Russia not to send Assad the S-300 anti-aircraft missiles, and as Russian media indicated that Moscow was delaying delivery.
• Officials present at the Netanyahu-Putin meeting “were shocked by the audacity Netanyahu displayed before a leader of a global power,” the Israeli paper reported.
• Putin reportedly guaranteed that Assad wouldn’t transfer the S-300s to a third party, such as Hezbollah, and that should Israel strike such an arms convoy, Russia didn’t believe Syria would retaliate. Despite this, Netanyahu reportedly made clear that Israel was concerned over the deal in and of itself.
• The Russian president was said to respond to Netanyahu saying that the deal had to go through, but hinted that Israel could prevent the transfer if it, or another entity, bought the missiles instead or “offered an alternative,” according to Maariv.
• Israeli media had earlier reported that Netanyahu warned Putin of a descent into war should Russia make the delivery. Netanyahu said that if acquired by Assad, the S-300 “is likely to draw us into a response, and could send the region deteriorating into war,” Channel 2 reported two weeks ago, in the immediate aftermath of the meeting.

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>> Read Damascus Countdown, the New York Times best-selling novel.

>> To learn more about the work of The Joshua Fund — and/or to provide a tax-deductible contribution to this work — please visit www.joshuafund.net.

Why is the Church splitting over Israel? I addressed several reasons at the Watchmen on the Wall conference.

On Thursday, May 23rd, I had the joy of addressing several hundred pastors who were gathered in Washington, D.C. The venue was the 10th anniversary of the “Watchmen on the Wall” conference, organized by the Family Research Council, and its president, Tony Perkins.

Tony asked me to specifically address the subject of, “The Church’s Call To Stand With Israel.” It was an honor to do so, because in the challenging times in which we live, we urgently need leaders who truly understand God’s love and plan for Israel — and for her neighbors. In I Chronicles 12:32, we read about “the sons of Issachar.” The text says these were “men who understood the times and knew what Israel should do.” At this critical hour — with Israel facing threats from Russia, Iran, Syria, Hezbollah, Hamas, Egypt and others — the State of Israel and the Church need more men and women who truly understand the times geopolitically, economically and Biblically, and know what Israel should do, and what the Church must do to be a blessing to Israel, the Palestinians, and to all the people of the epicenter.

In my remarks, I laid out five reasons why the Church should stand with Israel and her neighbors, and discussed some of the reasons why the Church is splitting over the issue of Israel. I hope you’ll take some time to listen to the message and prayerfully process it, as well as to share it with others.

Let me make one other note. Over the years, Tony Perkins and I have become friends, and I’ve been blessed by his love for our Lord Jesus Christ and his deep convictions and courage to speak out on vital issues related to the Church and the family. I also greatly appreciate his heart for educating and mobilizing pastors into the battle to save Israel and bless Israel. When I asked him a number of years ago whether he had ever had the chance to visit Israel, he said no, he had not. Given his position of influence within the American Church, I encouraged him to prayerfully seek the opportunity to go, both as a blessing to him and his family, to be a blessing to Israel and the Jewish people, as well as to set an example to other pastors and ministry leaders to go visit Israel and step into the story of what God is doing there. I was very encouraged, therefore, when Tony took up that challenge. In fact, not only did he visit Israel for his first time about 18 months ago, but he also helped lead a delegation of Congressmen and their wives on that tour of Israel. What’s more, he’s currently making preparations to go back and bring others with him later this year. Thank you, Tony, for putting your faith into action. May your tribe increase.

You can watch the video of my remarks by clicking here. Then, scroll down until you see my name among the list of speakers and click on that link. The remarks run about 36 minutes.

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>> Read Damascus Countdown, the New York Times best-selling novel.

>> To learn more about the work of The Joshua Fund — and/or to provide a tax-deductible contribution to this work — please visit www.joshuafund.net.