Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has said that creating a Palestinian state was the “most reliable” solution for peace in Israel and that fighting alone would not ensure security. Lavrov spoke on Monday during a news conference with the head of the Arab League, Ahmed Aboul Gheit, who visited Russia after Hamas, the Palestinian group that rules Gaza, launched a massive surprise attack on Saturday.
Creating a “Palestinian state that would live side by side with Israel … is the most reliable path to solve [the conflict]”, Lavrov said.
“We cannot agree with those who say that security can only be ensured through a fight with terrorism.”
He said Moscow was “deeply concerned that hundreds of Israelis and Palestinians have died and that the Gaza Sector has been declared a target for Israeli retaliation”.
Lavrov said Russia – in the middle of its almost 20-month-long Ukraine offensive – had “serious questions” about Western policy on Israel.
“They say that [fighting] should be stopped immediately, that Israel should destroy the terrorists,” Lavrov said.
“But this was done before … and never after the situation calmed down did they come to the fact that the main reason [for the conflict] needs to be eliminated,” he said.
Source: Aljazeera.com
