U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will travel to the Middle East and Russia next month, State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said Tuesday.

"She (Rice) is going to be traveling to the Middle East for the Iraq neighbors' conference and the international compact for Iraq. She's also going to be traveling to the Middle East to meet with Israeli and Palestinian officials to see if we can find a way forward to try to bring peace to that region," McCormack said.

"She's going to be traveling to Moscow to talk to (Russian) Foreign Minister (Sergei) Lavrov about issues related to Iran and U.S.-Russia relations," McCormack added.

Rice went to the Middle East in late March for talks with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas. However, the visit yielded no breakthrough.

Rice's Russia visit is aimed at persuading Russia to accept a U. S. plan to set up defense shield in the Czech Republic and Poland. Russia has voiced strong opposition to the plan and claimed the plan poses threat to Russian security.