U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid met in the Latvian capital of Riga on Monday to discuss Israel's diplomatic initiative to end the Ukraine-Russian conflict and also the possible revival of the 2015 Iran nuclear agreement, Lapid said in remarks at the start of the meeting with reporters present.

Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett traveled to Moscow for three hours of talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin last week and also spoke with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy over the phone.

"Israel is speaking with both sides, both with Russia and Ukraine, and we're working in full coordination with our greatest ally the United States, and with our European partners," Lapid said.

"Israel is a partner in the global effort to make sure and clarify that this war must be stopped. The way to stop the war is to negotiate."

Blinken said the United States appreciated any efforts of its allies "to see if there's any opening to end the war," and insisted that "any solution must ensure the independence and territorial integrity of Ukraine."

Lapid said his meeting with Blinken comes at a time "when the world order is changing," referring to both the conflict in Ukraine and the nuclear talks.

Soon after Iran's chief negotiator met the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on Saturday in Tehran, Russia announced that Western sanctions imposed over Ukraine had become a stumbling block for an Iran deal and asked for written guarantees from the U.S. before Russia backs the deal.

(With input from agencies)