Russia's special representative in the Middle East carries out shuttle diplomacy in the region

Special representative of the Russian Foreign Minister in the Middle East, ambassador at large Andrei Vdovin on Tuesday met Secretary General of the League of Arab States Amr Moussa. As the Russian representative told reporters after his conversation with the head of this pan-Arab regional organisation whose headquarters is situated in the Egyptian capital, during their meeting they discussed issues related to the search for ways out of the Middle East crisis and the crisis around Iraq.

Andrei Vdovin underscored that Russia was against the use of force and came out for a peaceful solution to disputable problems based on a dialogue. In this connection, he laid a particular stress on the fact that the solution to the Iraqi problem must be mutually acceptable and provide for the return of the UN disarmament inspectors and the lifting of the international sanctions against Iraq.

In the opinion of the high-ranking Russian diplomat, the solution to the Middle East problem is directly connected with the creation of a Palestinian state, existing side by side with Israel. Such a decision can be found, according to him, if the interests of all the sides in the conflict are taken into consideration, all possibilities of the peace process are used and precise answers to the most acute and complicated challenges of our time are found.

In this connection, pointed out Andrei Vdovin, the Group of Four Countries will meet in New York in the near future. Russia, apart from the United States and international organisations, is also a member of this Group. At this session it is envisaged to discuss optimal approaches to unblocking the Middle East situation.

The visit to Cairo by the special representative of the Russian Foreign Minister has coincided with the 118th session of the Arab League Council at the level of foreign ministers of the Arab countries which is opening later today. This event has in many respects determined the character and range of the meetings the Russian diplomat held in Cairo.