Hamas politburo chief Khaled Meshaal, on a current visit to Russia, described his talks on Friday with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov as constructive and frank. Meshaal, speaking at a news conference with the Russian Foreign Minister, said the discussions were good, constructive and candid. "These discussions underscore the wisdom of the Russians of inviting the Hamas delegation to Moscow," he said.| "Yasss, yasss. We told him to dance, and we won't kill him. Yet." |
UPDATE...Apparently, the conversation *was* rather frank. The non-Kuwait news version:
Palestinian election winner Hamas must recognize Israel's right to exist and abide by interim peace deals with the Jewish state, Russia told the militant group during a first day of talks on Friday. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said he had insisted all demands made by the Quartet of Middle East mediators -- Russia, the United Nations, United States and European Union -- must be respected.
"That means above all the need to stick by all existing agreements, the need to recognize the right of Israel to exist as a partner in negotiations (and) the need to reject all armed methods of settling political questions," the Interfax news agency quoted him as saying after talks with Hamas leaders. Although the visit was a setback for U.S.-Israeli efforts to isolate Hamas, Russia's mediation was seen by some in the West as a chance to push the group toward a more moderate stance. In Israel, interim Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said he had received assurances from Russian President Vladimir Putin that Moscow would "limit contacts" with Hamas.