Russia ready to organize meeting between Israeli, Palestinian leaders - diplomat

UNITED NATIONS, July 25. /TASS/. Russian is ready to arrange a meeting between Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Moscow, Russia’s Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations Vladimir Safronkov said on Tuesday at a meeting of the UN Security Council. In conditions of growing tensions around Jerusalem’s holy sites, it is necessary "not only to stabilize the current situation" but also to "open up real political horizons for the Palestinian-Israeli settlement via direct talks between the parties on a generally recognized basis of international law," he said. "We confirm our initiative to hold a meeting between President Abbas and Prime Minister Netanyahu in Moscow," he said. According to Safronkov, Moscow sees no alternative to settling the conflict on the basis of the two-state solution, which remains "the only realistic way to end the Israeli-Palestinian standoff and mutual accusations." The Russian envoy added that the long pause in the peace process "leads to increased risks of further deterioration." "The destabilizing factors have not been eliminated, they have only been made worse. The problem of settlement expansion also persists," he said. According to the Russian diplomat, the "extremely difficult" humanitarian situation in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip requires particular attention from the international community. UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Nickolay Mladenov said, in his turn, that two million Gaza Strip residents have become hostages of the political struggle between the rival Palestinian factions of Fatah and Hamas and were affected by Israel’s blockade on the enclave. According to the UN official, the Gaza Strip population experiences massive power outages and severe shortage of potable water. He called on the Palestinian factions to forge agreement and overcome the devastating consequences that the rift had had on the Palestinian people. Read more