MOSCOW, July 10. /TASS/. Settling crises troubling the Middle East and bilateral relations were the focus of a meeting between Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Secretary General of the Omani Foreign Ministry Badr Albusaidi, the Russian Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday.

"The sides hailed the advanced level of the Russian-Omani political dialogue, which is based on Moscow’s and Muscat’s close or identical approaches to pressing regional and international problems," the ministry said. "The sides stressed the necessity of the soonest settlement of ongoing crises in the Middle East by political means, via national consensus and in strict compliance with the principles of international law and the United Nations Charter."

"The two diplomats also addressed current issues of further development of the entire spectrum of traditionally friendly Russian-Omani relations, including closer cooperation in the trade-and-economic and cultural-and-humanitarian spheres," the ministry noted. "The sides expressed a common view that strengthening diversified ties between Russia and Oman meets their long-term interests and serves the purpose of ensuring security and stability in the entire Middle East."