Russia allocates $10mn to UN agency for Palestine refugees

Russia will allocate $10 million to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) through 2021, Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Vershinin said. He made the statement at the Ad Hoc Committee of the General Assembly for the announcement of voluntary contributions to UNRWA, TASS reported Tuesday. Russia acknowledges the role of UNRWA “through providing support in the form of non-recurring payments to the agency’s budget,” the diplomat said. A government decree provides for allocation of $10 million in 2017-2021, he added. In 2013 and 2015, Russia “also made non-recurring contributions to the budget of the agency amounting $2 million each, he said. US President Donald Trump announced on January 2 that Washington would cut off funding for Palestine, saying that the Palestinians were “no longer willing to talk peace” with Israel.