India, March 4 -- Russian President Vladimir Putin held a phone call with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to discuss "the escalation in the Middle East as a result of American-Israeli armed aggression" against Iran, the Kremlin said.

Both "expressed serious concern over the real risks of the spreading of the conflict, which has already affected several Arab countries and is fraught with catastrophic consequences," the Kremlin said in the readout of the call.

Putin "emphasised the urgent need to resolve the current extremely dangerous situation through political and diplomatic means".

Prince "expressed the opinion that Russia could play a positive, stabilising role in these times, given its friendly relations with both Iran and t...