Lavrov says Russia favours Israel-Iran ceasefire, but hard to say if it will last

MOSCOW (Reuters) -Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Tuesday that Moscow was in favour of a ceasefire between Israel and Iran but it was hard to tell if would last.

"It is very difficult to make any final conclusions now and get a clear picture," Lavrov said, in Russia's first reaction to the ceasefire agreement announced by U.S. President Donald Trump.

"It's reported that the Americans convinced Israel to agree to a ceasefire and to establish an indefinite truce, that our Qatari friends played a similar role with regard to Tehran," he said.

"But after it was announced, there were reports of strikes, of an exchange of strikes between Israel and Iran. Therefore, let us not make any hasty conclusions based on fragmentary information."

Russia, which signed a strategic partnership agreement with Iran in January, has condemned Israeli and U.S. attacks on Iran, as illegal and unprovoked. Iran has retaliated by striking Israeli cities and targeting a U.S. military base in Qatar.

(Reporting by Reuters; Editing by Mark Trevelyan)