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Middle East conflict

US, Israel undermining Palestinian statehood talks — Lavrov

The Russian foreign minister reiterated that it is impossible to ensure stability in the Middle East without creating a Palestinian state

ASTANA, May 21. /TASS/. The United States and Israel are trying to bury the issue of creating an independent Palestinian state, something that is absolutely necessary to ensure stability in the region, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told reporters following a meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Council of Ministers of Foreign Affairs.

"We discussed the settlement in the Middle East. We concurred that without creating a Palestinian state - and this issue is being swept under the rug both by Israel and the United States which supports it in every way - it is impossible to ensure stability in that region of our Eurasian continent," Lavrov said.

Tensions flared up again in the Middle East on October 7, 2023, when militants from the Gaza-based Palestinian radical group Hamas staged a surprise incursion into Israeli territory from the Gaza Strip. Hamas described its attack as a response to the aggressive actions of Israeli authorities against the Al-Aqsa Mosque on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem’s Old City. In response, Israel has declared a state of war readiness; announced a total blockade of the Gaza Strip, home to 2.3 million Palestinians; and began delivering air strikes on the enclave and certain parts of Lebanon and Syria, followed by a ground operation in the enclave. Clashes are underway in the West Bank as well.

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Foreign policy Sergey Lavrov United States Israel

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