A statement from the Foreign Ministry said that Lapid would take off at the end of the holiday for a diplomatic visit to Russia, where he would meet with his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov. 

A few weeks ago, the outgoing head of the National Security Council, Ben Shabbat, and the incoming head of the National Security Council, Hulta, visited Moscow. The two met with their counterparts to discuss the situation in Syria, following Israeli attacks.