"Our courtyard, Russia's. No need for negotiations": The unusual visit to Jerusalem - to the site Putin demands
The Russian ambassador to Israel arrived at the Alexander Courtyard in the Old City with a large delegation, days after claiming that "only legal procedures need to be completed" to transfer the historic site to Moscow. In Israel, it is emphasized that no decision has yet been made. The Ukrainian nuns who operate the place: "Russian clergy have already asked us 'when are you leaving?'"
Moscow is increasing pressure on Israel: against the backdrop of reports in Russia about progress in the process of transferring the Alexander Courtyard in Jerusalem to the Russian Federation, the Russian ambassador to Israel, Anatoly Viktorov, made an unusual visit on Saturday to the complex in the Old City. Viktorov arrived at the site together with a large delegation of nuns who came especially from Russia, family members, and several embassy employees.
The visit took place a few days after the Russian embassy in Israel stated that the re-registration process of Russian ownership rights to the Alexander Courtyard is in its "final stages," and that the issue is now "solely in the legal plane." This line was also explicitly expressed in remarks made by Viktorov himself in an interview last week with the RTVI channel:
"The courtyard is ours, Russia's courtyard, there is no need for negotiations on this. We just need to complete the legal procedures."
His words illustrate that from Moscow's perspective, the question of ownership has already been decided, and the remaining dispute concerns only the completion of the legal process in Israel. In Israel, on the other hand, it is emphasized that the process is still being examined by professional bodies, and that it is too early to determine if and when it will be completed.
Sources familiar with the matter warn against seeing the ambassador's visit as proof that a decision has already been made to transfer the complex to Russia. According to them, alongside the legal and political process, Moscow is also acting on the consciousness level — in an attempt to create a sense of a fait accompli and increase pressure on decision-makers in Israel.
One assessment is that the Russians are seeking to exploit the current political window of opportunity in Israel, out of an understanding that after the elections, the decision on the issue could become more complex — especially in a scenario where Benjamin Netanyahu does not remain in the position of Prime Minister. Therefore, say sources familiar with the details, Moscow has been increasing political and public pressure around the complex in recent times.
Viktorov's arrival at the Alexander Courtyard together with nuns who came especially from Russia may fit into this effort. The visit gives the move public visibility and conveys a message that Moscow already views the complex as an asset on its way to coming under its control. Strengthening this feeling also comes from the testimony of the Ukrainian nuns who currently operate the Alexander Courtyard. According to them, Russian clergy have recently asked them "when are you leaving" — a statement that was perceived by them as a hint that the Russian side believes an Israeli decision on the matter is already near.
Historical Context
The Alexander Courtyard is a historic Russian complex in the heart of the Old City in Jerusalem, a short distance from the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Its area is about 1,300 square meters, and it includes the Alexander Nevsky Church, which was inaugurated in 1896, as well as buildings and sites of historical and religious importance. The land was purchased back during the Russian Empire period, and the complex was established at the end of the 19th century at the initiative of the Imperial Orthodox Palestine Society (IOPS).
After the Russian Revolution, a prolonged dispute arose around the question of who owns Russian assets purchased in the Land of Israel during the days of the Tsar. In recent years, Moscow has been demanding that Israel recognize that the historical Ottoman registration, which was made in the name of the "Great Russian Kingdom," grants rights to the asset today to the Russian Federation. On the other hand, the society that established the complex claims that the rights to it belong to it and do not automatically transfer to the Russian state.
In 2020, during the Netanyahu government, an order was issued recognizing the Alexander Courtyard as a "holy site." At the same time, the state promoted the renewal of the registration of the complex in the name of the Russian Federation, but a petition filed by the IOPS blocked the move and effectively left the status quo. Two years later, Russian President Vladimir Putin addressed a personal letter to then-Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, asking him to act to transfer the rights to the complex to Russia — evidence of the importance the Kremlin attaches to the issue.
At the end of 2024, Netanyahu renewed the activity of the ministerial team examining the issue. The team includes, among others, Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar and Justice Minister Yariv Levin, and the handling of the issue is concentrated in the hands of the National Security Council and the Prime Minister's Office. In November 2025, the special inter-ministerial committee held a hearing with the participation of the parties. Russia participated in it actively, and since then it has been waiting for the protocol and an update regarding the next steps.
"Another foothold in the heart of Jerusalem"
The debate around the Alexander Courtyard is not conducted only on the legal plane. A study published last month by the Institute for National Security Studies (INSS), by Ella Itkin and Arkady Mil-Man, warned that the activity of the Russian Orthodox Church in Israel goes far beyond the religious plane. According to the study, throughout history, the Russian Church has also served as a tool for promoting Moscow's political interests, and during Putin's rule, the ties between the church, the Kremlin, and the Russian security services have strengthened.
The researchers also pointed to the ties of the IOPS with senior officials in the political and security system in Russia. The organization is headed by Sergey Stepashin, who previously served as Prime Minister of Russia and head of the Federal Security Service (FSB). According to the study, Ambassador Viktorov is also among the members of the organization. The authors of the study determined that in view of the close cooperation between the Russian Church and Putin's rule, and since, according to them, there is no legal necessity to transfer the complex to Russia, Israel is not expected to derive an advantage from the move. This is, among other things, in view of the close relations that Moscow maintains with Iran and with other parties hostile to Israel.
The researchers warned that handing over the Alexander Courtyard could give Russia another foothold in the heart of Jerusalem, and that a Russian success on the issue could open the door for future demands for receiving additional assets related to the Russian heritage in the Holy Land.
The Alexander Courtyard made headlines in Israel also around the Naama Issachar affair, who was imprisoned in Russia and released in January 2020. During the contacts for her release, reports were published that the transfer of the Alexander Courtyard to Russia was part of the understandings between Netanyahu and Putin. There is no public evidence that the transfer of the courtyard was an official part of the release deal, but over the years various sources have claimed that the issue was indeed raised in the framework of the talks between Jerusalem and Moscow.
Sources familiar with the issue say that from Putin's perspective, this is an issue of personal and symbolic importance. From his perspective, transferring such a significant historic Russian complex into Russian hands could be considered an important political and consciousness achievement in Jerusalem — especially in a period when Russia is in an acute confrontation with the West. Against this background, Viktorov's unusual visit to the Alexander Courtyard takes on additional meaning. Formally, the process has not yet ended, and it has not been reported in Israel that a decision has been made to transfer the complex to the Russian Federation. However, the very arrival of the ambassador to the site with a large delegation from Russia — and especially the questions directed at the Ukrainian nuns regarding the date of their departure — may indicate that Moscow is seeking to demonstrate that from its perspective, the struggle for the courtyard has already entered the final stretch.
