Welcome back to World Brief, where we’re looking at a consequential election in Israel, new European efforts to engage with Russia, and trade opportunities between the European Union and Asia.

Israeli voters flocked to the polls in record numbers on Tuesday in closely watched parliamentary elections seen as a referendum on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s leadership. Official results could take days to confirm, but preliminary exit poll results suggest no clear winner. Israel’s Channel 12 shows the bloc led by centrist opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot securing 52 seats in the parliament, compared with 50 seats for Netanyahu’s right-wing bloc and 18 seats for Arab parties.

Welcome back to World Brief, where we’re looking at a consequential election in Israel, new European efforts to engage with Russia, and trade opportunities between the European Union and Asia.

Israeli voters flocked to the polls in record numbers on Tuesday in closely watched parliamentary elections seen as a referendum on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s leadership. Official results could take days to confirm, but preliminary exit poll results suggest no clear winner. Israel’s Channel 12 shows the bloc led by centrist opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot securing 52 seats in the parliament, compared with 50 seats for Netanyahu’s right-wing bloc and 18 seats for Arab parties.

If those results prove accurate, the country could see weeks of political dealmaking before a government is formed. “Eisenkot’s path to power is hardly assured,” FP columnist Steven A. Cook writes. Still, with the Arab-led parties more likely to side with Eisenkot over Netanyahu, the results could mark the end of Israel’s most far-right government in history.

Tuesday’s vote comes at a critical time for Israel. It was the first national election since Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, attack and Israel’s subsequent wars in Gaza, Lebanon, and Iran. Supporters of Netanyahu have applauded his tough stance on Tehran, including his call last week for the Iranian regime to be removed “once and for all.” However, critics have accused the right-wing leader of failing to prevent the deadliest assault on Israel since its founding and of fostering democratic backsliding.

Early results suggest that many voters are unhappy with the status quo.

“The initial exit poll results indicate a........

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