MOSCOW, June 10. /TASS/. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has discussed with his South African counterpart Naledi Pandor the further contribution of the country to the settlement of the Ukrainian crisis, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

"Given the common understanding of the origins and causes of the crisis around Ukraine, the sides discussed further opportunities for the contribution of South Africa and a number of other countries of the global South in the search for peaceful resolution of the conflict," the ministry said. "During the exchange of views on the Middle East issues, the sides expressed concern over the ongoing escalation in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict zone. Some issues of the situation on the African and European continents were also considered," the ministry reported.

The sides thoroughly discussed "topical issues of the Russian-South African strategic partnership focusing on the expansion of trade and economic cooperation." "Mutual interest in deepening political dialogue and focus on effective coordination in the UN, BRICS, G20 and other international organizations was confirmed," the statement said.