At first glance, it seems absurd: The trip from Washington to Jerusalem is more than 1,500km longer than a flight from the Amerian capital to Moscow. Nevertheless, Mr John Bolton, the US National Security Adviser, travelled to Israel this week to meet his Russian counterpart Nikolai Patrushev.
The explanation for the enormous detour was provided by Mr Bolton himself at the opening of the historic meeting in what sounded like a panegyric to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu: "Thanks to your close relations with (Russian) President Vladimir Putin and President (Donald) Trump, there is a much greater chance of coordinating our respective strategies to achieve a secure and lasting peace throughout the region."
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