Moscow, July 23: Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday held telephone talks with Palestinian president Yasser Arafat to discuss urgent problems in Israeli-Palestinian relations, the Kremlin said in a statement.
In the talks, a Palestinian initiative, Arafat called on Russia to play a more active role in international efforts to bring peace and security to the middle east, the statement said.
Russia, along with the United States, is a co-sponsor of the middle east peace process, traditionally closer to the Arab side.
However, it has been very much overshadowed by the united states in recent years.
Israeli-Palestinian relations appeared to ease slightly today as the two sides made tentative conciliatory gestures following Israeli calls for reform of Arafat's Palestinian authority and Palestinian demands for an easing of sanctions imposed by the Jewish state.

Bureau Report