Russia says Israeli plan on Gaza hinders sustainable peace

MOSCOW

Russia said on Wednesday that it will be "difficult" to achieve sustainable peace in the region based on Israel's plan on Gaza.

Responding to a question by Anadolu at a news conference in Moscow, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova emphasized that the ministry has not seen the entire document presenting Israel's plan on Gaza, however, according to available data it contradicts the existing international legal basis for the Palestinian-Israeli settlement.

"History proves that any initiatives on the Middle East settlement if they go against the decisions of the UN Security Council, which provide for the establishment of a Palestinian state within the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital, coexisting in peace and security with Israel, are doomed to fail," she stressed.

Zakharova called the establishment of a sustainable cease-fire in Gaza "the priority task" because it is "an imperative step" to create the conditions necessary to launch a comprehensive settlement of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

"To this end, together with like-minded people, we are making every effort in the UN Security Council. Unfortunately, the US is blocking these efforts there," she regretted.

Equally important is to ensure political and geographical unity of the Palestinians, of the Gaza Strip and the West Bank of the Jordan River, as well as the implementation of the Russian initiative on conducting ministerial consultations of key external players involved in the problems of the Middle East settlement, the spokeswoman underscored.

"Without achieving such unity, the situation in the conflict zone risks returning to the status quo before Oct. 7, which will inevitably lead to new outbreaks of violence, new victims and will continue to destabilize the entire Middle East," she said.

Israel has launched a war on the Gaza Strip following a Hamas attack on Oct. 7. The ensuing Israeli bombardment has killed nearly 29,954 and injured over 70,000 with mass destruction.

The Israeli war has pushed 85% of Gaza’s population into internal displacement amid acute shortages of food, clean water, and medicine, while 60% of the enclave's infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed, according to the UN.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. An interim ruling in January ordered Tel Aviv to stop genocidal acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.