Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov held a press conference with Arab media on Monday in the context of President Donald Trump’s successful mediating to end the war in Gaza, downplaying the significance of that monumental diplomatic event.
Lavrov lamented that the 20-point peace plan the White House published in late September, which both Israel and the genocidal jihadist terror organization Hamas have accepted, was too “general” about the creation of a state of Palestine. The plan requires thorough reforms to the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank before it can be trusted to help govern Gaza, as well.
He claimed that Russia’s leaders “fully support” efforts to end the war between Israel and Hamas but added ominously, “skepticism remains.”
The Russian government has long maintained a close alliance with the world’s top state sponsor of terrorism, Iran — arguably Hamas’s most important financial supporter. The U.S. State Department estimates that Iran spends nearly $1 billion a year on international jihad, the majority of it on the Lebanese-based Shiite terrorist outfit Hezbollah, but about $100 million a year on Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), and similar groups in Gaza. Hamas was the official government of Gaza from 2007 until the signing of the Trump peace deal on Monday, which initiated a process to eliminate Hamas leadership and replace it with a functional bureaucracy.
In its capacity as an Iranian ally, Russia has used its international leverage to aid Hamas. Russian representatives at the United Nations regularly attempted to use their veto power at the Security Council to prevent action against Hamas, initially failing to stop Israel’s invasion of Gaza and later attempting to leverage influence to condemn Israel and the United States. Moscow has also hosted Hamas terrorists to discuss the situation on the ground in Gaza.
The Russian government welcomed Hamas terrorists to Moscow on October 27, 2023, mere weeks after the attack, to discuss “the immediate release of foreign hostages in the Gaza Strip.” The government of Israel branded the welcome “obscene.”
Lavrov, in his remarks to reporters on Monday, called resolution for the situation of Palestinians in both Gaza and the West Bank, which is under the leadership of the Palestinian Authority, “imperative.”
“We have noted that Donald Trump’s peace plan only addresses the Gaza Strip. It mentions statehood, but in rather general terms,” he lamented.
In several remarks, Lavrov insisted that Russia would accept a greater role in ending the war in Gaza, emphasizing, “Russia is ready to participate in any format.”
“When you ask about the prospects of today’s event,” he reportedly said, referring to the release of all remaining living Hamas hostages to Israel and a peace summit in Egypt, “of course, skepticism remains. Too many times, these hopes for peace and prosperity in this part of the world have not materialized.”
“We wish success in this endeavor, with the understanding, of course, that [Trump’s] plan will be fully carried out, that in the midst of implementing this plan, the gates will not be moved again and the rules of the game will not be altered,” the Russian news agency Tass quoted Lavrov as saying. “Of course, when it has been fully implemented in good faith, we must immediately move on to the practical aspects of establishing a Palestinian state and seek concrete compromises based on the decisions approved by the U.N. Security Council.”
Lavrov commented on Monday as a historic day unfolded in the Middle East. Hamas released the remaining 20 living hostages that it had taken during the atrocities of October 7, 2023, which began the war in Gaza. It has not completed its promise at press time to release the bodies of the 28 hostages that are believed to remain in its custody.
President Trump was in Israel on Monday to welcome the hostages and address the Knesset, the Israeli lawmaking body.
“This is now a very exciting time for Israel and for the entire Middle East, because all across the Middle East, the forces of chaos, terror, and ruin that have plagued the region for decades now stand weakened, isolated, and totally defeated,” Trump said.
“This is not only the end of a war, but the end of an age of terror and death, and the beginning of an age of faith and hope,” he proclaimed.
He then traveled to Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, for a summit to formalize the Gaza peace deal attended by at least 20 heads of government, but not Russia. The government of Iran was invited to attend, but declined in protest of America’s leadership and presence generally at the summit. The summit resulted in the conclusion of the acceptance stage of the Gaza peace deal, which will require extensive support and investment from Gaza’s Middle East neighbors to rehabilitate the war-torn area and eliminate the last vestiges of Hamas terror, ensuring safety in the strip and in neighboring Israel.
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