UNITED NATIONS, July 17. /TASS/. A frank conversation is necessary to prevent the bloodshed and for a long-term settlement in the Middle East, Chairman of the UN Security Council, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said, speaking at the Council meeting on the situation in the region.

"We need a frank and honest conversation on how to stop the bloodshed and suffering of civilians without delay, and how to move to a long-term settlement of both old and relatively new conflicts [in the Middle East]," the minister said.

According to Lavrov, the Middle Eastern region "faces unprecedented risks for security, welfare and peaceful life of its peoples."

"Waves of violence splash far beyond the Arab-Israeli conflict area, destabilizing the situation in the Persian Gulf, in Red and Mediterranean Seas, in North Africa," the foreign minister underscored.