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Russia not claiming to solve Israeli-Palestinian conflict on its own, says Lavrov

The Russian top diplomat comments on the Palestinian-Israeli conflict

NEW DELHI, December 11. /TASS/. Moscow has never been claiming to settle the Palestinian-Israeli conflict by itself, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Monday.

"We have always been working within the Quartet of international mediators, which is comprised of Russia, the United States, the United Nations and the European Union. Regrettably, the US side has been repeatedly making statements that the Palestinian-Israeli problem will be resolved by them only," he said, adding that Russia is not seeking to claim "sole headship" on that matter. "We want to achieve a result rather than to hit any propaganda jackpot," Lavrov stressed.

"Naturally, talks are needed. We believe that even the most serious opponents should meet at a negotiating table," he said.

On December 6, US President Donald Trump said "it is time to officially recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel." He added that he had directed the Department of State to begin a process of moving the US Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. After that, Palestine’s Ambassador to Russia Abdel Hafiz Nofal told a news conference in Moscow that Palestine did not recognize the United States as a negotiator in the Palestinian-Israeli settlement any longer.

The status of Jerusalem is one of the pressing issues in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Israel insists that Jerusalem is its "eternal and indivisible" capital, whereas Palestine strives for the city’s eastern part to become the capital city of their state. Under the resolutions of UN Security Council and General Assembly, the problem of the status of the ancient city should be resolved through direct negotiations between the parties to the conflict.