Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that Russia’s readiness to allocate 1 billion dollars to the Gaza Peace Council does not mean that Moscow has lost hope of recovering its assets frozen in the West.
Speaking at a press briefing today, Peskov emphasized that the 1 billion dollars to be channeled from frozen Russian assets through the Peace Council should be used for the reconstruction of Palestine.
Responding to questions regarding Russian President Vladimir Putin’s statement that Russia is ready to allocate 1 billion dollars to the Gaza Peace Council, Peskov said:
“As you know, yesterday the head of state announced that Russia is ready, through the Peace Council established on the initiative of President (Donald) Trump, to allocate 1 billion dollars from assets seized by the United States for humanitarian purposes. Of course, all the details will need to be discussed. President Putin also said yesterday that this issue would be discussed with President Abbas.”
‘We Have Not Lost Hope’
“This does not mean, so to speak, that our hope of recovering our assets has been completely exhausted,” Peskov noted. “We believe that all of these assets, regardless of where they are held, are being held illegally. We do not accept this. In any case, we will continue our fight and defend our rights. We will continue to use all possible means to secure the release of these assets,” he added.
‘They Should Be Used for Humanitarian Purposes in Palestine’
The Russian official said, “It is still unclear how this will be legally formalized. All of this must be negotiated. Then the obstacles will need to be removed, which will of course require certain steps from the United States. But once again, as President Putin said yesterday, this one billion dollars, through the Peace Council, should be spent on humanitarian purposes for Palestine and on the reconstruction of Palestine.”
Other Key Remarks from Peskov’s Briefing:
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Moscow highly values the efforts of U.S. President Donald Trump and his team to resolve the situation in Ukraine.
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U.S. special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner will arrive in Moscow this evening to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
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The Kremlin will not comment on the current stage of negotiations with the United States, particularly ahead of Witkoff’s arrival and his meeting with Putin.
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President Putin will meet Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas at the Kremlin.