Palestinian President Seeks to Lift Trade Barrier With Russia

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said that Palestine intends to cancel an agreement made with Israel in 1994 that hinders improving the trade turnover with Russia.

AMMAN (Sputnik) – Palestine intends to cancel an agreement made with Israel in 1994 that hinders improving the trade turnover with Russia, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas told Sputnik. According to Abbas, the current annual trade turnover between Palestine and Russia is estimated to be around $1 million.

"We want more freedom in trading with Russia and other countries around the world. We would be happy if our turnover with Russia were a hundred times greater than what we have today," Abbas said.

According to Abbas, the Palestinian Authority is bound by the Paris Protocol it seeks to be canceled.

The document, signed in 1994, established interim-period economic relations between Israel and the Palestinian Authority. Under the protocol, Israel collects the import taxes on goods and transfers to the Palestinian Authority the taxes on those goods that are intended for it.

The Palestinian leader said a treaty on the creation of a joint economic partnership commission was expected to be signed in Moscow during his visit beginning April 12.

According to the Russian Economic Development Ministry, the Russian-Palestinian trade made up $894,000 in 2014, a $60,000 gain over the previous year.