MOSCOW, April 8. /TASS/. Moscow spoke from the very beginning about the need to shift as soon as possible the escalation in the Middle East to the diplomatic track, Russian Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Wednesday.

"I would like to remind you that from the very beginning we talked about the need to bring this escalation to a peaceful path as soon as possible, to move to the track of political and diplomatic contacts and negotiations as soon as possible," Peskov said at a news briefing.

On April 7, US President Donald Trump announced a mutual decision with Iran to halt hostilities for a two-week period. The move comes in the wake of a proposal from Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and is "subject to the Islamic Republic of Iran agreeing to the complete, immediate, and safe opening of the Strait of Hormuz," the US leader specified.

Iran’s state-run television reported that Tehran put forward a 10-point proposal that the United States "was forced to accept." Among other things, Tehran’s proposal includes ending attacks, establishing Iranian control over the Strait of Hormuz, uranium enrichment on Iranian soil, lifting all primary and secondary sanctions, full payment of Iran’s damages, and withdrawing US combat forces from the region.