Russian President Vladimir Putin in a telephone conversation with German Chancellor Angela Merkel said that today the most important thing for the settlement of the Ukrainian crisis was ‘the withdrawal of military units from the country’s southeast, cessation of violence and an extensive national dialogue’, the Kremlin press service reported on Thursday, adding that the conversation took place at the initiative of the German side.
“The discussion of the crisis socio-political situation continued. Merkel requested to provide assistance in the release of military observers from a number of European counties, including Germany, who were detained in the southeast of Ukraine,” the press service said.
“Putin stressed that the main thing today is to withdraw troops from the southeast regions of the country, stop violence, immediately launch an extensive national dialogue that would involve all the regions and political forces,” the Kremlin stressed.
“Both sides noted the importance of the maximum use of the mediator potential of the Organization for Security and Co-Operation in Europe (OSCE) throughout Ukraine,” the press service said.
The leaders of Russia and Germany arranged to hold another telephone conversation shortly.
