Russia is preparing a new plan to resolve the crisis in the Middle East sparked by the spiraling violence between Israel and the Palestinians, Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov said Friday.
Ivanov told Russian deputies that events on the ground had made redundant a Russian proposal to hold a summit between the two warring sides hosted by Moscow, Washington and UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan.
But he insisted that Russia, as a co-sponsor of the Middle East peace process, had an important role to play in preventing a wider conflict.
"We must prepare proposals to reinforce Russia's role as a co-sponsor of the peace process. Arab leaders are asking us to do so directly and Israel has a positive attitude," the foreign minister said – MOSCOW (AFP)
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