Russian Mediation in Palestinian Reconciliation: Progress and Challenges

A report by Yazbek Wehbe, English adaptation by Nadine Sassine

 

Moscow felt sidelined in the efforts to end the Gaza war, so it chose to enter through the gate of Palestinian-Palestinian reconciliation, which has been stalled for seventeen years, based on its good relations with various factions. 

 

President Vladimir Putin sought to bring together Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and Hamas Political Bureau Chief Ismail Haniyeh in Moscow, but his efforts were unsuccessful.

 

The Russian Institute of Oriental Studies, closely affiliated with the Russian Foreign Ministry, extended invitations to hold the meeting under the auspices of Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, with his supervision. 

 

Twelve out of fourteen factions participated in the meeting, the first of its kind since Operation al-Aqsa Flood, and notably included representatives from Fatah and Hamas.

 

Two days of meetings resulted in a statement of nine points, which fell short of expectations and aspirations and was less than hoped for. 

 

However, the most important aspect was mentioned at the beginning, regarding the agreement to hold upcoming dialogue rounds and an emphasis on achieving comprehensive national unity that includes all forces and factions within the framework of the Palestine Liberation Organization, the legitimate and sole representative of the Palestinian people. This matter was previously a subject of dispute and rejected by Hamas.

 

Forming a unified technocratic government to manage the post-war phase also became a topic of discussion. Moscow thus succeeded in bringing together the warring Palestinian factions. Still, there are questions to be raised: Will agreement be achieved, and will all factions unite under the banner of the PLO? More importantly, will they agree in the future on a unified stance in negotiating with Israel, whether directly or indirectly?