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Diplomats from Russia, Spain, Italy discuss Israeli-Palestinian dialogue

The sides "acknowledged counter-productivity of any unilateral steps on the track of the Israeli-Palestinian settlement"

MOSCOW, March 11. /TASS/. Russian Foreign Ministry’s Envoy for the Middle East Settlement Vladimir Safronkov discussed conditions for restarting the Israeli-Palestinian negotiations with diplomats from Spain and Italy on Wednesday.

"A detailed exchange of opinions has taken place, regarding the regional situation, with emphasis placed on the importance of stepping up multilateral cooperation in order to create the necessary preconditions for restarting the peace process between Israelis and Palestinians," the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

The sides "acknowledged counter-productivity of any unilateral steps on the track of the Israeli-Palestinian settlement," the statement says.

The diplomats discussed Russia’s initiative to convene an international conference on the Middle East peace process, voiced by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov during the UN Security Council session in January.

They also "unanimously confirmed the unique role of the Middle East Quartet of international negotiators, comprising Russia, the United States, the United Nations and the European Union, which is the only mechanism to assist the peace process approved by UN Security Council resolutions."

Addressing the United Nations Security Council debates on the Middle East settlement on January 26, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov suggested a ministerial meeting of the Quartet members, Israel, Palestine, Egypt, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Saudi Arabia, as the co-author of the Arab Peace Initiative, be held in the spring or summer 2021.

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