Putin Blames U.S. for Middle East Crisis

The Russian leader blamed Washington for what he called attempts to “monopolize the [peace] settlement,” without “looking for compromises acceptable to both sides.” Putin was meeting in Moscow with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed al-Sudani on Tuesday. He said the U.S. had neglected to take into account “the fundamental interests of the Palestinian people, bearing in mind, first of all, the need to implement the decision of the U.N. Security Council on the creation of an independent, sovereign Palestinian state.”