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Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-russia-israel-idUSKCN0YT1EV
Netanyahu Visits Russia as U.S. Influence in Mideast Recedes
(Reuters) Dan Williams and Denis Dyomkin - No one expects Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu to break up Israel's bedrock alliance with the U.S. But he is mindful of Putin's sway in the Syrian civil war and other Middle East crises as the U.S. footprint in the region wanes. "Netanyahu's not defecting, but what we see here is a bid to maneuver independently to promote Israel's interests," said Zvi Magen, a former Israeli ambassador to Russia now with Tel Aviv University's Institute for National Security Studies. With Russian forces fighting alongside Iran and Hizbullah to keep Syrian President Assad in power, Putin is the closest thing to a guarantor that Israel's three most potent enemies will not attack it from the north.