Abu Mazen in Moscow

The secretary of the executive committee of the PLO, Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen), arrived in Moscow on Monday to hold consultations with Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov and other Russian officials dealing with the situation in the region and the future of the peace process.

A well-informed Russian source said the visit is of great importance because it takes place just one week before the visit of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu who will arrive in Moscow on Sunday.

Talks between the two sides are expected to deal with the possibility of announcing the Palestinians state.

One Palestinian expert in Middle East affairs told the London-based al-Hayat daily that Moscow prefers the declaration of the Palestinian state, but, on the other hand, calls for linking this "suspension of declaration" to Israel and international obligations to carry out withdrawals as stated in the Wye River agreements.