Moscow Ready to Serve as Consultative Platform for Palestinian Case

TEL AVIV (Sputnik) - Moscow is ready to serve as a platform for multilateral consultations on the Palestinian issue as soon as the acute phase of the Middle Eastern conflict is over, Russian Ambassador to Israel Anatoly Viktorov told Sputnik.

"The first and foremost task is an immediate ceasefire. After the acute phase of the current escalation is over, we suggest convening multilateral consultations in Moscow at a ministerial level aimed at harmonizing the initial approaches of regional actors to the issue of ensuring the Palestinian unity as well as to the issue of the Middle Eastern settlement in general," Viktorov said.

At the second stage, the platform could include the members of the leading Palestinian organizations, which should be under the umbrella of the political wing of the Palestine Liberation Organization, he noted.

"International actors that are ready for constructive cooperation on the Middle Eastern settlement will also be welcomed to join the Moscow consultations. Our priority is to form an effective multilateral mediating mechanism where countries of the region will play a significant role," the ambassador said.

For the next stage, Moscow offers to hold an international conference for the Middle Eastern settlement to proclaim the state of Palestine, as well as to work out concrete measures which would ensure Israel’s security and normalize its relations with the Arab and Muslim states, the diplomat added.

"[We] also mean a broader idea of creating a collective security system in the Persian Gulf zone and, generally, in the Middle East," Viktorov underlined.

On October 7, 2023, Palestinian movement Hamas launched a large-scale rocket attack against Israel from Gaza and breached the border,killing 1,200 peopleandabducting around 240 others. Israel launched retaliatory strikes, ordered a complete blockade of Gaza, andstarted a ground incursioninto the Palestinian enclave with the declared goal of eliminating Hamas fighters and rescuing the hostages.Over 27,500 people have been killedso far in the Gaza Strip, local authorities said.

On November 24, Qatar mediated a deal between Israel and Hamas on a temporary truce and the exchange of some of the prisoners and hostages, as well as the delivery of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip. The ceasefire was extended several times and expired on December 1. More than 100 hostages are still believed to be held by Hamas in Gaza.