MOSCOW, January 28 (RIA Novosti) - Russia and Israel believe the principles of the roadmap for peace, a plan to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, must be observed by all participants in Palestine's parliamentary elections, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement Saturday.
The elections to the Palestinian Legislative Council were held January 25 in East Jerusalem, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip with an 80% voter turnout. The radical Islamic group Hamas won the elections with a clear majority, provoking international concern.
The ministry said Russian and Israeli foreign ministers Sergei Lavrov and Tzipi Livni had discussed the issue on the phone twice in the past three days.
"The Russian and Israeli ministers stated that the voting was well organized, in line with the generally recognized standards and norms. It was stressed that regardless of the election outcome, all participants in the Palestinian election process should respect the principles of peace settlement outlined in the roadmap," the statement reads.
The sides emphasized that Palestinians should give up violence, disarm their illegal armed units and acknowledge that Israel's right to exist.
The Russian Foreign Ministry said Friday that the recent parliamentary elections of the Palestinian National Authority had demonstrated Palestinians' ability to form their own state.
"Whatever the final results [of the election], they demonstrated the ability of the Palestinians to progress toward creating their own state," the ministry said.
A senior member of the Russian lower house of parliament said Friday that the victory for Hamas could cause tensions throughout the region.
Mikhail Grishankov, a deputy head of the State Duma's security committee, said the prospect of armed lawmakers in power would make any sensible person worry about the consequences.
