CAIRO, April 16. /TASS/. Possible ways to stabilize the situation in the Middle East and cool things down in the region were among the topics discussed by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi and visiting director of Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) Sergey Naryshkin, Egyptian presidential spokesman Ahmed Fahmy said.

El-Sisi and Naryshkin "discussed the recent developments and ways of stabilizing the situation in the Middle East amid the crisis in the Gaza Strip and general escalation in the region," he said.

The sides also exchanged views on "the settlement of a range of African problems, anti-terrorism efforts and other pressing issues on the international agenda, including the situation in Ukraine and Afghanistan."

Apart from that, they discussed "Qatar’s efforts toward containing the situation in the Middle East by means of maintaining contacts with all the parties, he said, adding that the Egyptian president stressed that a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and unimpeded humanitarian deliveries to the enclave are the key steps toward regional detente.

El-Sisi and Naryshkin reiterated their commitment to continue consultations and coordination on various matters "to ensure the interests of the two countries and their peoples who have historically friendly relations," he added.

The meeting was also attended by Director of the Egyptian General Intelligence Directorate Abbas Kamel.