Russian President Vladimir Putin and his French, German and Ukrainian counterparts agreed in a phone call early Wednesday that they wanted talks between Kiev, Moscow and militants controlling parts of eastern Ukraine to resume as soon as possible.In a statement, the Kremlin said that the leaders "continued discussion of the crisis situation in Ukraine" and emphasized the "necessity of a stable ceasefire" in eastern Ukraine.
The Kremlin noted "the importance of holding a meeting of the contact group as soon as possible in the interests of carrying out the Minsk pact," referring to a peace deal reached in September. The so-called trilateral contact group includes representatives from the separatist side, Ukraine, Russia and the OSCE.
The leaders agreed to "continue telephone contacts in the near future," the statement said.