Abbas seeks Putin’s help to revive Israeli-Palestinian peace process
The Palestinian Authority is trying to urge Russia to play a more effective role in the peace process through its position in the international Quartet and to call for an international peace conference. But there are still no serious indications of Russia’s responsiveness.
RAMALLAH — Once again, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is knocking on the Kremlin’s door to urge his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, to intervene to revive the dead peace process through a meeting in Sochi Nov. 23.
Ahead of his trip to Moscow Nov. 22, Abbas told the Russian agency Sputnik News that he would discuss reviving the political process with Putin and he trusts the Russian support in this framework, in light of Russia’s faith in the two-state solution that enjoys international legitimacy.
Abbas added that his visit to Russia stems from the fact that it is one of the international Quartet committee members and a permanent member of the UN Security Council. Russia also has special relations with all regional parties and significant sway on them. Abbas relayed, once again, his interest in holding an international peace conference under the auspices of the international Quartet committee, as per the decisions of the international legitimacy, and he reiterated his trust in Russian support.
He noted, “I will fill Russia in on the latest developments of the Israeli-Palestinian relations and on how to find a political solution based on decisions of international legitimacy and ways to promote bilateral relations, not to mention several regional and international issues of common interest.”
