Russia's President said in Cairo yesterday that Moscow aimed to hold a Middle East peace conference before the end of this year, a move backed by Egypt.
Russia, which has proposed such a conference in the past, is a member of the Quartet of Middle East negotiators, along with the EU, the US and the UN.
"We paid special attention to Middle East issues. We highly appreciate efforts by the Egyptian president to create an atmosphere of trust and cooperation in the region," Dmitry Medvedev said after talks with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak.
"(The) Moscow Middle East conference, which we plan to hold before the end of the year, will also contribute to achieving this goal," he said at a joint news conference in Cairo.
Israeli spokesman Yigal Palmor said Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman recently told his Russia that Israel "would, in principle, agree to attend, provided, of course, that anti-peace elements such as Hamas and Hezbollah are not invited".
Moscow is the only Quartet member talking to Hamas, the group that controls Gaza but which is snubbed by Israel and the West. Russia also has good contacts with Israel.
Yasser Abed Rabbo, aide to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, said: "We welcome the holding of an international conference in Moscow. But before it can go ahead there must be real improvements."
This included stopping Israeli settlement activity on Palestinian land and an Israeli commitment to a two-state solution, he said.
The Palestinians, like Egypt and other Arab states, have dismissed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's conditional proposal for a demilitarised Palestinian state.
"I affirmed Egypt's support for holding the proposed international conference in Moscow to push peace efforts, and our support for everything that contributes towards achieving a just and comprehensive peace in the region," Mr Mubarak said.
Mr Medvedev's trip to Egypt comes less than three weeks after US President Barack Obama visited Cairo to deliver an address aimed at improving Washington's ties with the Muslim world.
In that speech, Mr Obama also said he would "personally pursue" a two-state solution.
"What is the basis for a solution to this problem? Those are international legal norms and certain principles including the principle of two states, discussions on (Israeli) settlements and the future capital," the Russian President said.
"These are difficult questions but Russia is ready to help solve them."
Egypt is Russia's leading trading partner in the Arab world, with annual turnover at $4.1 billion last year, and Mr Medvedev called for expanding commercial ties and investments.
"We also view as promising ... projects in the energy sector, including nuclear energy, in industrial and transport sectors," he said.