MOSCOW, March 19 (Xinhua) -- Moscow calls for an immediate end to the hostilities resulting from the "unprovoked aggression" by the United States and Israel against Iran, the Russian Foreign Ministry said Thursday in a statement regarding the unfolding situation in the Persian Gulf region.

The ministry said that Moscow consistently advocates "the need to create conditions for peaceful, secure, and neighborly coexistence between friendly Arab countries and Iran."

"We emphasize that the first step on this path must be the immediate renunciation by the United States and Israel of their military adventure," the statement said.

The ministry reaffirmed Russia's readiness to facilitate resolving the conflict and finding solutions to existing disputes through political and diplomatic means, in order to achieve long-term sustainable stability in the region, while taking into account the interests of all states located there.

"We are prepared to continue to provide constructive assistance in resolving the conflict and resolving existing contradictions in the Middle East through political and diplomatic means," it added, including creating conditions for joint efforts to find a sustainable settlement based on balancing the legitimate interests of all countries in the region.  ■