Vladimir Putin met with Amr Moussa in Moscow to discuss the conflict between the Israelis and Palestinians. Russia is one of the four mediators in the Middle East peace talks, and the Cairo-based Arab League includes the Fatah-dominated Palestinian Liberation Organization as one of its 22 members.
"The Russian president and the secretary general of the Arab League have reaffirmed their support for the idea of holding an international conference on the Middle East," Sergei Lavrov said.
"I think a [collective] approach can best be realized through an international conference," Lavrov said earlier, adding that the conference should highlight both the Palestine-Israeli conflict and the Syrian-Lebanese situation.
Lebanon, which is divided between the largely pro-Syrian Muslim Shiite majority, led by the Islamist group Hezbollah, and the Christian minority opposed to Syrian influence, emerged from a 15-year civil war in 1990.
Last summer the country was also devastated by Israeli air strikes during the Israeli campaign against Hezbollah, and later in the year Hezbollah-inspired mass rallies swept the country demanding the government's resignation.
Russia has played a prominent role in the Middle East peace negotiations through the Quartet of mediators, which also comprises the United States, the EU and the UN. The Russian minister said Moscow once again urged the other nations of the region, the Arab League and the conflicting sides themselves to join the mediation work of the Quartet.
"I am convinced that at this crucial stage, when the situation in the region has escalated, our contacts and agreements will be very welcome in the region and the international community as a whole," Lavrov said in a reference to the Arab League.
The four Middle East negotiators met last week in Washington amid fears of a possible civil war in the Palestinian Authority after a surge in violence between supporters of the ruling Islamist group Hamas and the pro-president opposition Fatah.
Amr Moussa, in turn, praised Russia's efforts to resolve the situation in the Middle East.
"We welcome the policy pursued by Russia and President Putin personally," he said. "Such a position is highly appreciated by Arab nations."
