Lavrov on Palestine at Presser 11/3

Very short and to the point

Lavrov held a presser after his talks with Kuwait’s Foreign Minister Sameh Al-Sabah that after the usual opening remarks went straight to the main issue of Palestine and also Syria. Russia’s position ought now to be very clear to all readers, although further discussion will follow.

Ladies and gentlemen,

We had detailed talks with my colleague, Foreign Minister of the State of Kuwait Sabah Al-Sabah. We paid special attention to the prospects for the development of our bilateral, traditionally friendly relations. March 2023 marked the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between our countries. We reaffirmed our commitment to further progress in all areas on the basis of the fundamental agreements reached at the highest level.

We agreed to promote the build-up of inter-parliamentary contacts. The Minister will meet with State Duma Speaker Vladimir Volodin today. We agreed to intensify delegation exchanges.

We paid special attention to promoting economic, trade and investment ties. We noted the important role of the Intergovernmental Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific and Technical Cooperation in this regard. We agreed to expedite the convening of its next seventh meeting, which is to be held in Russia in order of priority.

We noted that Russia is becoming a popular tourist destination for Kuwaitis. Since the beginning of this year, the tourist flow from Kuwait to our country has increased almost 10 times compared to 2022. The fact that in February 2023 we established direct flights between Moscow and Kuwait City played a positive role. The simplified visa regime introduced by the Russian side for citizens of Kuwait, as well as a number of other countries, which from August 1 of this year can use an electronic visa, which is issued quickly and without any bureaucratic delays, has certainly had an effect.

Today we agreed to think about drafting an intergovernmental agreement on the complete abolition of visa requirements for citizens of our countries. We would like to sign such a document without delay.

We talked about current regional issues. We gave priority attention to the Middle East settlement in view of the sharp deterioration of the situation in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. Russia, like Kuwait, categorically condemns and rejects all terrorist acts, as well as the indiscriminate use of force against civilians, hostage-taking and other violations of international humanitarian law.

We consider it necessary to take urgent measures in order to achieve an early ceasefire, the opening of humanitarian corridors in order to avoid new casualties and provide the necessary assistance to the affected civilians. We call for intensifying efforts to create conditions for the early resumption of a comprehensive negotiation process between Palestinians and Israelis. It is clear that this is difficult to do at this stage. But as soon as we achieve a ceasefire, we need to return to resuming direct negotiations on the creation of an independent Palestinian state, as envisaged by the UN Security Council within the 1967 borders, which would coexist in peace and security with Israel.

We touched upon the situation in Syria and around it. In particular, the return of Damascus to the Arab League and the need to back up this positive decision with practical actions to improve the situation on the ground.

We reaffirmed our principled position in support of a full-scale Syrian settlement based on UN Security Council Resolution 2254, which provides for the preservation of the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the Syrian Arab Republic.

Russia informed us about our actions to promote a unifying agenda in the Persian Gulf. We discussed this issue in July 2023, when all the ministers of the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (GCC) visited us. We held a regular ministerial meeting as part of the strategic dialogue. We welcome the normalization of relations between Saudi Arabia and the Islamic Republic of Iran. This creates the basis for the development of collective mechanisms of trust and the promotion of various forms of cooperation.

We expressed our gratitude to our Kuwaiti friends for their balanced and objective position on what is happening in Ukraine and around it. I reaffirmed our principled approaches to the settlement of the conflict. They are well known, but we do not see any political will in the West and in Kiev for a sustainable and truly just peace. Our approaches to ensuring that such peace is ensured with full consideration of the security interests of the Russian Federation and the citizens who live and have lived for centuries in these territories are well known.

I would like to thank my colleague for a fruitful and trust-based exchange of views.

Question: In recent days, there has been a public discussion of an Israeli plan to resettle Palestinians from the Gaza Strip to Egypt and Canada. Three phases are envisaged: the establishment of tent camps in the Sinai, the establishment of humanitarian evacuation corridors and the construction of permanent settlements beyond the Pale of Settlement. What do you think about this kind of engineering?

Sergey Lavrov: I haven't heard of Canada at all. Although lately I am not surprised by anything that has been reported about Ottawa's position and actions.

I haven't heard of such a plan. There are many ideas circulating, all of which are aimed at delaying (if not burying) the UN Security Council's decision to establish a Palestinian state.

The Egyptians have already said publicly that they categorically disagree with solving the Palestinian problem by resettling in the Sinai Peninsula. This is clearly contrary to the interests of the Palestinians, the Egyptians and peace in the region.

We are very wary of plans to destroy the prospects for the creation of a Palestinian state and condemn the Palestinians to an eternal existence without rights. This will ensure neither peace nor security in the region, it will only drive the conflict deeper. And you won't be able to drive it deep. The next "grapes of wrath" will be sown, which will quickly "sprout".

Before planning any adventures, it is better to get together and agree on how to implement the UN Security Council decision. That is the only way to ensure peace and security in this complex and volatile region.

Question: What is Russia's position on the future of Gaza? What Russian initiatives are being worked on, including at international venues?

Sergey Lavrov: In my opening remarks, I said that it is necessary to stop the bloodshed as soon as possible, to ensure a ceasefire and resolve humanitarian issues. Then, without delay, through the efforts of the entire international community, to bring about the resumption of direct negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians. They can be based exclusively on the international legal framework created by the decisions of the UN Security Council and the UN General Assembly, as well as previous agreements of the parties. That is the only way to solve this problem.

This is not about Gaza, but about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The State of Palestine is an integral part of that solution. As for the rest, I repeat, we have great doubts and concerns.

As for initiatives. We have made and continue to do so in the UN Security Council with relevant proposals, primarily aimed at a ceasefire, the resolution of humanitarian issues and the return of hostages. We are working on this in practical terms on a daily basis in our contacts with the Israelis, Egyptians and Palestinians both here and in the region.

Today, we talked about the initiatives that will be implemented in the coming days, including the Arab League summit and the Arab-African summit on the Gaza Strip.

When considering a particular conflict, we always rely on the decisions, opinions and assessments of regional countries. In this case, it will be fundamentally important for us to know the unanimous opinion of the Arab world (I am sure it will be). We will do everything we can to facilitate the implementation of the plans and initiatives that the countries of the region will formulate. We fully trust them to ensure peace and stability here. We will support the Arab solution to this very difficult issue. [My Emphasis]

There are several emphasized points that merit reiteration. The first relates to the Zionist goal of genocide which is what “destroy the prospects for the creation of a Palestinian state and condemn the Palestinians to an eternal existence without rights” refers to without mentioning the terms Zionist or Outlaw US Empire. This is supremely important and is clearly a strong message to the Zionists that their project is opposed by more than just Russia. It’s also a message to Team Biden and the US Zionists that they won’t be allowed to triumph. The point that the problem must be solved or it will continue to fester and cause future destabilization is also key and yet another signal to the Zionists that their project is dead and that a solution will be found.

That the issue isn’t Gaza is paramount—the issue is the need to fulfill the original Mandate to create a Palestinian State since the Zionists refuse to live in harmony with others. The responsibility that such a state has yet to be created is to be blamed on the Imperialists of the UK, USA, France, and the Zionists whose original plans to use a Jewish state to control the Oil Lands is well known to students of the region’s history where its modern designs first arose 200 years ago, even before the discovery of the Oil Lands, as the aim then was the destruction of the Ottoman Empire, building of the Suez Canal, securing British India, and further consolidating and expanding African Colonialism. Yes, this entire problem is directly related to the Age of Plunder which several nations want to perpetuate.

The last point is who will generate and thus “own” the solution—the locals who are majority Arabs—and will revolve around the Arab Peace Initiative that was announced in 2002. Many have no clue to its proposals as they’ve been buried and ignored by the West’s BigLie Media. This link goes to an excellent source that includes the API’s entire text and discussion of its genesis and aftermath. The following is an excerpt from that site which contains words that are very similar to those we’ve heard since 7 October:

Crown Prince Abdullah’s speech at the Summit on March 27 is also of importance, since it included an unprecedented direct appeal to the Israeli people:

Allow me at this point to directly address the Israeli people, to say to them that the use of violence, for more than fifty years, has only resulted in more violence and destruction, and that the Israeli people are as far as they have ever been from security and peace, notwithstanding military superiority and despite efforts to subdue and oppress.

Peace emanates from the heart and mind, and not from the barrel of a cannon, or the exploding warhead of a missile. The time has come for Israel to put its trust in peace after it has gambled on war for decades without success. Israel, and the world, must understand that peace and the retention of the occupied Arab territories are incompatible and impossible to reconcile or achieve.

I would further say to the Israeli people that if their government abandons the policy of force and oppression and embraces true peace, we will not hesitate to accept the right of the Israeli people to live in security with the people of the region.

Russian policymakers have said essentially the same things over and again, Zakharova most recently. However, it’s equally clear that the Zionists ignored what was said above and continued their genocidal project. What ought to be clear today is the Zionists have absolutely no intention of ceasing their efforts, which is now the main point at issue—how to force them to stop. Clearly, one major step is to sever the link between the Outlaw US Empire’s Zionists and those within Palestine, for the Empire is the #1 reason for today’s situation as there’s absolutely no way the Zionist’s project could have advanced this far without the Empire’s direct aid and abetting.

So, on that note, we can see that one major effort to solve the Palestinian Crisis resides within the Empire’s domestic politics—the Zionist Neocons must be deposed if the link is to be severed. And that’s going to be very difficult because their Deep facilitators control BigLie Media and thus are capable of manipulating public opinion on this issue as we’ve seen repeatedly over the decades. Furthermore, for the Multipolar World to become stable, the solution of Palestine must be attained; otherwise, it will continue to be a source of chaos and destabilization to be used by the Outlaw US Empire. In other words, Solving Palestine is THE KEY to establishing global peace.

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