JERUSALEM — Nearly 150 years after Russian Czar Alexander II bought a large plot of land in Jerusalem from the Ottoman Empire, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert arrived in Moscow last week bearing a gift: the deed.
The move by the outgoing Israeli leader, after decades of dispute on the issue, has caused an uproar here over the timing and, more significantly, the idea of yielding parts of Jerusalem -- a serious red line in this country.
The Jerusalem Post fretted in an editorial that the precedent could "open up a Pandora's box of other territorial demands."
Land is, of course, at the heart of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, but it doesn't end there: A host of other countries and religious orders could make a case similar to Russia's. (For starters, the Greek Orthodox Church technically owns the land on which the Knesset and the prime minister's residence stand.)
The hand-over of the 9-acre compound known as the Sergei Courtyard proceeded without comment from the Palestinian Authority, which appears to accept that its own territorial claims in Jerusalem are a separate matter. In fact, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas recently granted a plot of land in Bethlehem to Russia to build a secondary school.
Nevertheless, some Israeli politicians said that a dangerous precedent was being set. Conservative lawmaker Aryeh Eldad speculated that the Jordanian government, which controlled East Jerusalem until the 1967 Middle East War, could make a similar claim.
"What's the difference between an absentee Russian and an absentee Arab?" he asked.
The transfer is effective immediately, but there are still a few hurdles on the Israeli side. It's being challenged in court by a group that is arguing that Olmert, who has technically resigned and is caretaker prime minister until a new government is formed, lacks the authority to make such a move.
Olmert's gift to Russia is essentially a continuation of a promise made by his predecessor, Ariel Sharon, to former Russian President Vladimir Putin. But the timing has sparked criticism that Olmert was trying to win geopolitical concessions from Russia.
Israel and Russia have clashed recently over Moscow's desire to sell weapons to Syria and Iran and its opposition to increased international sanctions against Iran.
Russia has said it opposes Iranian nuclear capability and pledges not to sell offensive weapons to either country. But Israelis fear that Russia will provide antiaircraft systems that could neutralize Israel's regional air superiority.
