The Jewish state can only have peace if Palestinians have a nation of their own, the Russian president has said
Israel “certainly” has the right to defend itself against Hamas’ brutality, Russian President Vladimir Putin has said. Only peaceful coexistence with a Palestinian state, as proposed by the UN, can resolve the conflict in the long term, he believes.
The Russian leader reiterated Moscow’s concern over the escalation of violence in the Middle East, stressing that thousands of Israeli and Palestinian civilians have been killed or injured since last Saturday when Hamas launched a surprise incursion out of Gaza.
Israel was subjected “to an attack that was unprecedented in its brutality, and it certainly has the right for defense, to ensure its peaceful existence,” the Russian leader said.
Putin reiterated his position that the ongoing crisis was caused by a failure of US foreign policy. “The Americans, supported by their European satellites, tried to monopolize the Middle East settlement, but did not care about finding a compromise that both sides would find acceptable.”
“The US one-sided line over many years pushed the situation further into a dead end,” Putin added, noting that Israel’s “settlement activities” contributed to the disruption of the peace process.
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