Russia calls on Iran, Israel to exercise restraint

By Elena Teslova

MOSCOW (AA) - Russia on Thursday called on Israel and Iran to exercise restraint following Israeli strikes on the Iranian diplomatic mission in Syria earlier this month.

"Now it is very important for everyone to maintain restraint to avoid a complete destabilization of the situation in the region, which already is not an example of stability and predictability," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said at a press briefing in Moscow.

The spokesman reminded that Russia "very harshly” condemned the Israeli attack on the Iranian diplomatic mission in Damascus, Syria, that left 13 people dead.

"This is a violation of all principles of international law," Peskov stressed, noting that neither Iran nor Israel requested Moscow's assistance to ease tension.

Turning to Switzerland's intention to hold a peace conference on Ukraine, the spokesman said any talks on Ukraine without Russia's participation have “no sense.”

He reminded that two years have passed since the Russia-Ukraine talks in Istanbul, saying: "In two years ... the situation has changed. And the geopolitical reality is very different from what it was in March 2022. It would be short-sighted not to take this into account in any talks."

Peskov also criticized Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for saying in an interview with the German state media group Axel Springer that Russia's infrastructure, including the bridge connecting the Crimean Peninsula with the mainland part of the country, has been Kyiv's "priority target."

The Kremlin spokesman underscored that such statements prove that Russia was right when launched its "special military operation" in Ukraine in February 2022.