MOSCOW, January 21 /TASS/. Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov, the Russian president’s Special Representative for the Middle East and Africa, and Egypt’s Deputy Foreign Minister Osama al-Majdoub stressed the importance of creating a broad counter-terrorism front on the basis of international law and the United Nations Charter at consultations held on Thursday.

The sides discussed in detail the situation in the Middle East and North Africa and stressed the need to settle all crisis situations in that region.

"It was noted that the threats of terrorism and radicalism were constantly growing and that it was extremely important to create a broad anti-terrorist front based on the norms of international law and the provisions of the United Nations Charter," the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement issued after the meeting.

"Special attention was paid to the situation in Syria. Moscow and Cairo confirmed their common stance that they saw no alternative to a political settlement of the Syrian crisis through an inclusive intra-Syrian dialogue brokered by the United Nations and the International Syria Support Group," the Russian Foreign Ministry said.

"The exchange of views also revealed the convergence and similarity of Russian and Egyptian approaches to the Libyan settlement. The sides stressed the urgent need to build up consolidated efforts to unblock the process of the Middle East settlement, primarily in the Palestinian-Israeli direction," the Russian Foreign Ministry said.

Mikhail Bogdanov and Osama al-Majdoub agreed that Russia and Egypt should continue coordinating approaches on the key Middle East and African problems, including at the United Nations and other international floors.