MOSCOW, November 29 (Itar-Tass) —— Russia calls for broader donations to Palestine and diversification of bilateral cooperation, Director of the Foreign Ministry Middle East and North Africa Department Sergei Vershinin said at a ceremony, which marked the Day of Solidarity with the People of Palestine on Tuesday.
“We unwaveringly support broader donor assistance to Palestine and support this policy with practical deeds,” the diplomat said. “Russia sends humanitarian aid to people on the West Bank and in Gaza. Last year we made another transfer of $10 million. This August the Russian government decided to provide targeted financial aid to the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) of 15.5 million rubles.”
“We do not forget about other appeals of the PNA either,” Vershinin said. “For instance, we are considering the possibility of funding the construction of a secondary school in Bethlehem.”
“We will continue to assist the PNA in the training of national personnel at Russian higher educational establishments on scholarship basis. More than 500 Palestinian citizens are being trained in technical, humanitarian and medical professions, most of them at the expense of the Russian budget. We are confident that these graduates will be in demand as public officers and other professionals in Palestine,” he said.
“Russia is working on diversification of bilateral cooperation,” he said. “Together with Palestinian friends, we are broadening trade, develop tourism and promote investment projects.”
Vershinin expressed his gratitude to the Palestinian authorities for assistance to the restoration and broadening of the Russian historical presence on the Holy Land. “The opening of the park museum in Jericho is an illustrative example to that. I am confident that the forming Russian Center of Science and Culture in Bethlehem will make a worthy contribution to these efforts,” he said.