MOSCOW, Jan 31: The world must continue to provide aid to the Palestinians despite the shock election victory of the Hamas movement — which must in turn recognise Israel’s right to exist, Russian President Vladimir Putin said here on Tuesday.

Speaking at his annual Kremlin news conference, Putin stated plainly that Russia did not share the West’s official view that Hamas was a “terrorist” organization but added that this did not mean the movement could expect Moscow’s unqualified support.

“Hamas must leave its radical declarations, must recognize Israel’s right to exist and normalize contact with the international community,” Putin said. He described the movement’s unexpected recent election victory as a “serious blow” to US efforts to broker a Middle East peace settlement.

Hamas must make the transition from being a radical opposition movement to the governing party of the Palestinian people, Putin said, adding however that the fact of Hamas’ coming to power in the Palestinian territories was not sufficient grounds for cutting off aid to the Palestinians.

“Refusal of aid to the Palestinian people would be a mistake in any event,” he said, adding: “Our foreign ministry has never described Hamas as a terrorist organization.”

The first two hours of Putin’s news conference were broadcast live on state television, after which only radio carried his remarks live.

Putin’s comments came as the West and Israel grappled with how and whether to deal with Hamas and as senior representatives of the movement said international aid for the Palestinians was strictly “humanitarian” but gave little sign of flexibility on their opposition to Israel.

Focusing on the Middle East, Putin renewed a proposal aimed at breaking the international impasse over Iran’s nuclear program, calling for the creation of a global “network” of highly secure facilities for handling the nuclear fuel cycle, including uranium enrichment.

Such a plan, Putin argued, would simultaneously ensure a steady supply of nuclear fuel to any country interested in using atomic energy while also upholding strict international nuclear security.

In his wide-ranging news conference, Putin also touched on issues such as the conflict in the southern Russian province of Chechnya.—AFP