The Great Smoky Mountain Journal

Staff, Wire Reports

Posted: Sunday, January 21, 2018 07:26 PM

Russian President Vladimir Putin Criticizes US Recognition Of Jerusalem As Israel's Capital Warning It Could Threaten Middle East Peace Process

ISTANBUL - Russian President Vladimir Putin has criticized the U.S. recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital, warning that it could destabilize the region and derail the Middle East peace process.

Speaking Monday after a hectic day that took him from a Russian base in Syria to Cairo and Ankara, Putin said the U.S. move "doesn't help the Mideast settlement and, just the other way round, destabilizes the already difficult situation in the region."

The Russian leader added that it may "finish prospects for the Palestinian-Israeli peace process."

He added that Moscow believes that the status of Jerusalem should be settled through talks between the Palestinians and Israel in line with United Nations resolutions.

The Palestinians claim east Jerusalem as the capital of their future state.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has arrived in Ankara to meet his Turkish counterpart, following visits to Syria and Egypt.

Putin and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan are meeting Monday evening to discuss developments in Syria and the Middle East, as well as bilateral relations, according to the Turkish president's office.

Putin and Erdogan met several times this year and regularly talk on the telephone as they and Iran work to broker a solution in Syria.

Relations between the two countries were tense after Turkey shot down a Russian fighter jet for violating its airspace in 2015. But the two have since restored bilateral relations.

Putin and Erdogan are expected to hold a joint news conference after their meeting.