MOSCOW, December 13. /TASS/. Moscow is doing all it can to bring about an end to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and calls for a lasting ceasefire, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said, addressing the Federation Council (the upper house of parliament).
"We will do everything we can [to end the conflict]. First of all, we are working to resolve pressing issues related to the need to release the people who are being held hostage or simply want to leave the Gaza Strip. This is our priority. Clearly, we also believe that it’s important to resolve the larger humanitarian issue, including the provision of medical treatment and other services, as well as humanitarian aid, to those who remain in Gaza and cannot leave for various reasons," Lavrov noted. "The third urgent goal is to ensure a ceasefire not just to carry out humanitarian missions but to establish a permanent truce in order to address an issue that is 75 years in the making, that is, the issue of creating a Palestinian state," he added.
According to the Russian foreign minister, there have been reports that "the Americans are also concerned about this and want to quietly and secretly come up with a scheme of their own or with someone else." "The plan allegedly includes the establishment of a protectorate under the leadership of Arab countries - who actually aren’t eager to engage - or under a UN mission involving international peacekeepers," Lavrov explained. "The UN is also, as far as I understand, not burning with desire to get involved in the situation where nothing is clear and Israel is categorically stating that it will see the operation against Hamas through, meaning the complete elimination of Hamas. The West, the Arab world and Israel itself have serious doubts that this is actually possible," Lavrov said.
The top Russian diplomat stressed that according to the UN Security Council's decisions, a united and independent Palestinian state needs to be created within the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital, which would live side by side with Israel in peace, security and good-neighborliness. "This is still a very long way off," Lavrov noted.
According to him, it is clear that "pundits" in Washington are unable "to contrive a sustainable and viable concept of creating a Palestinian state" either on their own or with assistance from their closest allies. "Even if they come up with something, it will be short-lived and will not be able to bring peace and prosperity to the Palestinians and Israel. The reason is because the ongoing injustice towards the Palestinian people, who were promised their own state back in 1948, certainly nourishes major terrorist and extremist attitudes. At least it allows terrorists to take advantage of dissatisfaction among the Palestinians and other Arab nations to recruit more supporters," the Russian foreign minister emphasized.