MOSCOW, July 25. /TASS/. Russian Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov wants everyone to take a breath after hearing the idea voiced on Wednesday by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about creating a NATO-style military bloc in the Middle East, and not jump to any hasty conclusions.

"We need to understand where Mr. Netanyahu is coming from before jumping to any conclusions," Peskov told reporters when asked to comment on the Israeli prime minister's initiative.

"We must understand the details of this initiative: an alliance of which states [is supposed to be created]," the spokesman said. At the same time, he stressed that NATO "has a pronounced and systemic confrontational positioning." "NATO was initially created to deter the Soviet Union, moving on to deterring the Russian Federation, something it continues to do to this day," he pointed out.

"Do we need confrontational mechanisms in the Middle East? Hardly," the Kremlin spokesman added.

Earlier, Netanyahu, speaking at a joint session of the US Senate and House of Representatives, called for the creation of a security alliance in the Middle East similar to NATO in Europe.