MOSCOW, July 13 (RIA Novosti) - Russia's foreign minister and the Lebanese prime minister agreed over the phone Thursday on the need to end armed confrontation on the Lebanese-Israeli border.

Sergei Lavrov and Fouad Siniora also called for diplomacy in the conflict.

The radical Hizbollah movement took two Israelis hostage on Wednesday after killing seven Israelis in fighting. An Israeli missile strike on Beirut's international airport on Thursday morning left at least 27 Lebanese dead, including 10 children.

The Russian Foreign Ministry said, "Both sides expressed concern over the dangerous escalation of the conflict on the Lebanese-Israeli border."

"They welcomed an initiative from UN Secretary General Kofi Annan to send a special UN mission to the region to help appease the situation," the ministry said.

Lavrov said earlier that the problem could only be resolved through negotiations.

"Both sides suffered injuries and fatalities, including civilians," the minister said. "The only way to prevent a disaster is to start talks on how this problem could be resolved."

"At the moment they are acting in the language of ultimatums," he added.