Iranian Professor Seyed Mohammad Marandi asked Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Valdai Club how he views the Trump peace plan. Citing the genocide in Gaza, Marandi said Trump’s peace proposal looks “more like a submission and capitulation. And especially introducing someone like Tony Blair with his history is insult to injury…. What do you think the Russian Federation can do to bring an end to this misery?”
[Putin replied that](http://en.kremlin.ru/events/president/news/78134, “you may find this surprising, but Russia is overall ready to support” the proffered Trump plan, “provided, of course, that it truly leads to the ultimate goal we have always spoken about … the creation of two states: Israel and a Palestinian state … the only key to a final, lasting solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict,” a point Putin insisted on three times.
As for the role of Blair: “He is not known as a great peacemaker,” Putin admitted. “But I know him personally…. He is a man with strong personal views, but he is also an experienced politician. Overall, if his knowledge and experience are directed towards peace, then yes, of course, he could play a positive role.”
Putin said that he has not looked through the plan thoroughly yet, and raised a series of questions still to be answered. Among them:
“First: how long would this international administration operate? How, and to whom, would power then be transferred?” Putin argued that “it would be best to transfer control directly to President Abbas and the current Palestinian administration. Perhaps they may face difficulties in addressing security matters. But as I heard from colleagues today, this plan also envisages that the power transfer may involve local militia groups in order to ensure security…. In my opinion, this could be a good solution.”
