United Nations, Sep 23 (IANS/RIA Novosti): Russia will support a Palestinian bid for statehood at the UN, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has said.

"As long ago as 1989, when the Palestinian state was proclaimed, the Soviet Union at the time recognised the statehood of Palestinians…since then we have had in Moscow the embassy of the state of Palestine headed by a full fledged ambassador." Lavrov said an interview with CNN, due to be released Sunday.

"Yes, we have no difficulty," he said, when asked if Russian would support the Palestinian bid.

He also said the Palestinians "deserve to be heard, and to see what the international community thinks of the case".

"The reason why they want a UN vote is that they want to emphasise their urgency for the negotiations to be resumed on the basis of existing legal framework, which is composed of Security Council resolutions and decisions by the Arab quartet," Lavrov added.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is expected to deliver a formal request for statehood recognition Friday when he speaks to the UN General Assembly.

Israel and the US strongly oppose the move, saying the long-running Middle East conflict can be resolved only through negotiations.

Washington has pledged to veto any Palestinian statehood bid in the UN Security Council.