Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday told Palestinian Authority President Mahmud Abbas that Moscow was “concerned” about civilian deaths in Gaza.

“We are concerned above all about civilian losses,” Putin said, Arab News reported. 

“We are doing everything ... to support Palestine and the Palestinian people,” he said.

The only way to create “long-lasting, reliable, stable peace in the region” is implementation of all UN resolutions and the “creation of a fully-fledged Palestinian state,” he added.

Abbas told Putin: “We feel that Russia is one of the dearest friends of the Palestinian people.”