MOSCOW, Jan 4: Russia, France and the European Union have launched separate initiatives for ceasefire in Gaza.

Moscow on Sunday called for lifting the blockade and stopping civilian bloodshed on both sides in Gaza and dispatched a special envoy to help secure a mutual ceasefire and France’s President Nikolas Sarkozy called key players in the Middle East to muster support for the French peace initiative.

The European Union’s ministerial delegation set off from Prague for Cairo, with meetings planned with Israeli and Palestinian leaders.

In Moscow, a Russian foreign ministry statement said: “The new dangerous escalation in the armed conflict… is a matter of extreme concern. It is essential, without delay, to put an end to the suffering of the civilian population on both sides, to stop the bloodshed and secure a mutual ceasefire.”

It added that President Dmitry Medvedev’s Middle East envoy, Alexander Saltanov, was going to the region.

“Among the measures urgently needed for the prevention of a large-scale humanitarian catastrophe in the sector is the lifting of the (Gaza) blockade,” the ministry said.

Mr Medvedev said Russia will “continue to contribute to efforts by the international community to bring about a normalisation of the situation in the region”.

In Paris, the president’s office said Mr Sarkozy spoke with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Zapatero, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert to rally support for a French initiative for a ceasefire.

Nicolas Sarkozy will embark on a four-nation tour of the Middle East on Monday. He will visit Egypt, the West Bank and Israel on Monday and in Syria and Lebanon on Tuesday.

EU External Relations Commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner said: “We are terribly concerned about the situation in Gaza, particularly the humanitarian situation.—Agencies