MOSCOW, July 1 -- Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday called upon Qatar and its neighboring countries to solve the current crisis by making political and diplomatic efforts, as he held a telephone conversation with Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani.

"The two leaders discussed the crisis in relations between Qatar and a number of other states. Vladimir Putin stressed the importance of political and diplomatic efforts aimed at overcoming the disagreements and normalizing the current complicated situation," the Kremlin said in a statement.

According to the statement, the heads of state also shared opinions on relevant issues of Russian-Qatari cooperation with an emphasis on the implementation of a number of promising projects including investment and energy, as well as agreed on contacts at different levels.

Earlier on Saturday, Putin had a telephone conversation with King of Bahrain Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, during which the two leaders also touched upon the Qatar issue, noting that it brought negative effect on the already complicated situation in the Middle East.

"They (The leaders) stressed that it is vitally important to launch a direct dialogue based on mutual respect between all states involved in the conflict," the Kremlin said.