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Egyptian, Russian foreign ministers discuss regional situation, including Iran

Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty said that his country is making every possible effort to create a favorable environment for negotiations between the United States and Iran and to turn this crisis into a diplomatic one

CAIRO, February 24. /TASS/. Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty has talked over the phone with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov to discuss the situation in the Middle East and the Iranian nuclear program, the Egyptian Foreign Ministry said.

"The foreign ministers of Egypt and Russia discussed the rapid changes of the regional situation. The Egyptian foreign minister said that his country is making every possible effort to create a favorable environment for negotiations between the United States and Iran and to turn this crisis into a diplomatic one," it said in a statement.

Abdelatty also said that a peaceful settlement of the situation around the Iranian nuclear program "will help prevent the development of escalation in the region."

In January, the White House warned that it was seriously considering the use of force against the Islamic republic. Washington then expressed the hope that Tehran would sit down at the negotiating table and sign a "fair and equitable" deal, implying a full renunciation of nuclear weapons. Iran has repeatedly said it has no intention of creating an atomic bomb.

On February 17, the second round of negotiations between the United States and Iran on the nuclear dossier was held in Geneva with the mediation of Oman. The Iranian Foreign Ministry said mutual understanding on some issues was achieved, the agreements on which can be included in the draft of a future agreement on the nuclear program. Washington said that the consultations went well, but Tehran is not yet ready to recognize some positions outlined by the White House. The United States and Israel had previously insisted on Iran's abandoning not only the nuclear program, but also the production of ballistic missiles, and the support of pro-Iranian forces in the Middle East. A new round of meetings between Iran and US is to take place on February 26 in Geneva.

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