Russia signaled on Sunday that it wants to see a reduction in hostilities surrounding Iran, expressing optimism that diplomatic efforts could succeed and urging the United States to shift away from threats and return to negotiations.

The message from Moscow’s Foreign Ministry followed a discussion between Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi, focusing on the growing crisis and possible paths to calm the situation.

According to the statement, both officials “called for efforts to avoid actions, including in the U.N. Security Council, that could undermine the remaining chances for advancing political and diplomatic efforts to resolve the crisis.”

The Russian government added that it supports steps aimed at lowering tensions and stabilizing the region over the long term, emphasizing that such progress would depend in part on Washington changing its approach.

Russia, it said, backed efforts to de-escalate tensions “in the interests of long-term and sustainable normalization of the situation in the Middle East, which would be facilitated by the United States abandoning the language of ultimatums and returning the situation to a negotiating track.”