MOSCOW, October 29. /TASS/. Russia is strongly urging Israel to abandon plans to proceed with the construction of settlements on the occupied Palestinian territories, the Foreign Ministry’s official spokesman Alexander Lukashevich said on Wednesday.

“Israel’s plans to expand settlements in any part of the occupied Palestinian territories run counter to the international law and cannot but arouse deep concerns,” Lukashevich said.

Russia is especially concerned about the construction projects in East Jerusalem as “any ill-thought-out unilateral actions there may have far-reaching consequences,” Lukashevich said. 

The statement comes after Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu earlier this week announced plans to construct over 1,000 new housing units in populous Jewish neighborhoods of East Jerusalem.

Netanyahu has also ordered preparations for implementing infrastructure projects in the West Bank, including the construction of 12 new roads to be used by both settlers and Palestinians.

The continued construction in the Jewish settlements in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, is one of the key obstacles to the peaceful settlement of the decades-long Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

The international community urges Israel to abandon settlement activity which hampers efforts to resolve the conflict based on the principle of two states for two peoples.