Russia awaiting response on Gaza reconstruction proposal, FM says

Russia agreed nearly a year ago to allocate $1 billion for the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip from frozen foreign exchange reserves held in the United States, but has not yet received a response, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has said.

He noted that following the adoption in November 2025 of a UN Security Council resolution on the creation of a Peace Council, President Vladimir Putin formally informed the US leadership of Moscow’s readiness to transfer $1 billion free of charge for the reconstruction of Gaza, Caliber.Az reports, citing Russian media.

The funds would come from allegedly illegally frozen Russian foreign exchange reserves in the United States, which amount to several billion dollars.

“Nearly a year will soon pass, but we still have not received any response,” Lavrov noted.

“This raises the question of whether those promoting this plan are truly interested in receiving resources for Gaza’s reconstruction, or whether there are plans to turn the entire sector into a ‘Riviera,’ as many often say,” he added.

On Palestine, Lavrov said: “We should all be ashamed. I will say it this way, because the efforts undertaken over many years aimed at removing Palestine from the list of global priorities are unfortunately bearing results.”

By Bakhtiyar Abbasov