MOSCOW, October 16. /TASS/. The future of the Gaza peace deal is unclear, Vladimir Putin meets with Syria’s interim leader, and the European Union plans to increase its military budget. These stories topped Thursday's headlines across Russia.
Israel and Hamas continue to implement the peace plan, albeit with delays and frequent accusations against each other. Another incident occurred on October 15: the Palestinian movement handed over four bodies of hostages to Israel, but one of them turned out to be a Gaza resident. The mistake sparked outrage among Israeli authorities, returning the issue of the deal’s feasibility to the table. However, experts note that the international community's interest in resolving the sharp phase of the conflict outweighs the dissatisfaction of the parties.
Grigory Lukyanov, a researcher at the Center for Arab and Islamic Studies at the Institute of Oriental Studies under the Russian Academy of Sciences, told Izvestia that the result was predictable. Moreover, each of the parties approached the preparation of the agreement based on the idea that they "rather did not need it than needed it."
"Israel and Hamas are reacting more to outside pressure from the United States and regional states, which are deeply interested in formally ending the current phase of the conflict. Therefore, they leave room for maneuver at each stage, try to avoid binding measures or agreements and preserve the maximum number of options for exiting the deal by accusing the other side of undermining the agreements reached," he explained.
