Russian Presidency: There is great concern about the development of the situation in Gaza Strip into a regional war

The Russian presidency has warned that the situation in Gaza Strip may develop into a regional war, calling for an end to the fighting and the stabilization of the situation as quickly as possible.

The presidency said in a statement today: “Russian President Vladimir Putin held telephone conversations with the presidents of Syria, Iran, Egypt and Palestine, and expressed his deep concern about the massive escalation accompanied by a catastrophic increase in the number of civilian casualties.”

The presidency added: “Putin listened to the opinions and assessments of the presidents who stressed the seriousness of the humanitarian situation in Gaza Strip, and the necessity of lifting the siege on Strip to provide urgent supplies of medicines, food, and other vital goods. There were also serious concerns about the possibility of the situation escalating into a regional war.”

The presidency noted that Putin stressed that “Russia does not accept any form of violence against civilians, and is ready to provide humanitarian assistance and coordinate efforts with all partners with constructive approaches to stop the fighting as quickly as possible and stabilize the situation.”

Putin explained that the reason for the current unprecedented escalation is the long-term stagnation in the settlement process in the Middle East, reiterating his principled position in support of resuming the political process in order to reach a long-term and just solution to the Palestinian issue on known international legal foundations that allow the establishment of an independent Palestinian state.

Inas Abdul Kareem