Advanced talks are under way to convene a meeting in Moscow between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. Both Israeli and Palestinian officials confirmed that the meeting will likely be held in October or shortly thereafter, under the patronage of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The meeting will be part of a Russian-backed peace-summit aimed at restarting the long-stalled negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians. Some three months ago discussions were held regarding a summit in Cairo, in which a three-way meeting was scheduled between Netanyahu, Abbas and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.
However, the demand by Egypt to advance the peace-summit instead of the French initiative for an international-peace conference was rejected by the Palestinians, as President Abbas remains determined to see the French initiative move-ahead. Israeli officials revealed that Netanyahu spoke with Putin several days ago and that the issue came up for discussion. They said, however, that the possibility of a meeting between Abbas and Netanyahu under Russian auspices was still “premature.”
The sources noted that Netanyahu was prepared to meet directly with the Palestinian leader at any time, without pre-conditions. Nevertheless, President Mahmoud Abbas has remained adamant that his preconditions for renewing the peace process be met, including, a construction moratorium of Jewish settlements on lands the Palestinians want for the future state, the release of a fourth round of long-serving Palestinian prisoners, which was agreed by Israel in the last round of negotiations yet wasn’t carried out, and the establishment of a clear end date for the negotiations and reaching an agreement.