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UN calls on Israel to abandon threats to annex Palestinian lands

UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Nickolay Mladenov also informed that on May 21 he will have a meeting with Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh to discuss the latest statements of the Palestinian leadership

UNITED NATIONS, May 20. /TASS/. The United Nations is calling on Russia, the United States and the European Union to boost mediation efforts in the Israeli-Palestine dialogue and is urging Israel to renounce threats to annex Palestinian territories, UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Nickolay Mladenov told a video conference of the UN Security Council on Wednesday amid the Palestinian statement that it is quitting all international agreements with the US and Israel.

"I call on my colleagues in the Middle East Quartet - the United States, the Russian Federation and the European Union — to work with the United Nations and quickly come forward with a proposal that will enable the Quartet to take up its mediation role and work jointly with countries in the region to advance the prospect of peace," he said. "Israel must abandon the threats of annexation."

The UN official also informed that on May 21 he will have a meeting with Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh to discuss the latest statements of the Palestinian leadership. "Tomorrow I will be meeting with the Palestinian Prime Minister in order to better understand the practical side of the decision by the leadership and its implications on the ground," he noted, branding the statement made by Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas a "desperate cry for help" and a "call for immediate action".

"If there is one concern that we all share, that is the need for all to work together to prevent escalation and radicalization," Mladenov added.

Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas on May 19 announced that all agreements signed with the US and Israel were terminated. He then added that Israel should be held responsible for attempts to annex occupied Palestinian territories. On May 17, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that it was time to annex a part of Palestinian territories in West Bank.