Moscow Exploring Possibility of 'Normandy Four' Phone Conversation - Kremlin

The possibility of a telephone conversation in the so-called Normandy Four format on settling the conflict in Donbas region is being considered through diplomatic channels, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Monday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Earlier in the day, French President Emmanuel Macron said the next round of Ukrainian conflict reconciliation talks between Russia, France, Germany, and Ukraine would take place in late June or early July. Macron added that he planned to introduce a set of measures to "advance" conflict resolution efforts.

"Such a possibility is being worked out through diplomatic channels," Peskov said.

Last week, Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov said that next phone conversation of the so-called Normandy Four leaders may be held later in June.

The latest conversation between the Normandy Four leaders took place in April and was focused on prisoners’ exchange, observation of the ceasefire regime and the necessity to comply with the Minsk accords.

Eastern Ukraine has been in a state of turmoil since April 2014, when the government in Kiev launched a military operation against militias in Donbas. The leaders of Russia, Ukraine, Germany and France elaborated a ceasefire agreement in February 2015 in Minsk, the capital of Belarus, later signed by Kiev and the Donbas militias. Despite the peace accords, ceasefire violations remain ongoing.