Lavrov, Ayrault Discuss Ukraine Crisis Settlement, Upcoming Mideast Conference

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and his French counterpart Jean-Marc Ayrault exchanged their opinions on the settlement of the Ukrainian crisis and upcoming January 15 international conference in Paris on the Israel-Palestine conflict, according to the statement of the Russian Foreign Ministry.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and his French counterpart Jean-Marc Ayrault discussed the crisis in Ukraine over the phone on Friday, the Russian Foreign Ministry said.

"The exchange of opinions on the settlement of the Ukrainian crisis took place. The ministers reiterated the necessity to fully stick to the Minsk agreements," the ministry said in a statement.

Lavrov and Ayrault also discussed preparations for the upcoming Paris international conference on the Israel-Palestine conflict.

"The outlook for the resolution of the conflict in the Middle East was discussed. Jean-Mark Ayrault informed [Lavrov] about the preparations for the upcoming January 15 international conference in Paris," the ministry said in a statement.

The ministry stressed that Lavrov spoke to his counterpart about Russia's efforts to "facilitate the restoration of the Palestinian unity" and emphasized the importance of rebuilding the dialogue between the two sides of the conflict.