Lavrov Calls for Kiev-Donbass Dialogue in Phone Talk With Klimkin

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said during a phone conversation with his Ukrainian counterpart Pavlo Klimkin that Kiev authorities must establish direct dialogue with the eastern breakaway regions of Donetsk and Lugansk in search of mutually acceptable solutions to the Ukraine crisis.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) – Kiev authorities must establish direct dialogue with the eastern breakaway regions of Donetsk and Lugansk in search of mutually acceptable solutions to the Ukraine crisis, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Monday during a phone conversation with his Ukrainian counterpart Pavlo Klimkin.

"The Russian side again stressed the urgent need for direct dialogue between Kiev and Donetsk and Luhansk as a precondition of finding mutually acceptable solutions to the existing problems," the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement following the talk.

The ministry added that Lavrov and Klimkin had discussed the problems related to the regulation of the Ukrainian crisis and the complicated humanitarian situation in southeastern Ukraine.

Donetsk and Luhansk regions in eastern Ukraine announced their independence from Ukraine in early April as local residents refused to recognize the new coup-installed government. In response, Kiev launched a military operation in the region.

Ukraine and Western countries have blamed Russia for the escalation of the situation in Ukrainian southeastern regions. Moscow has dismissed the accusations as lacking any substantial ground.