On 8 January, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov had a telephone conversation with German Minister for Foreign Affairs Frank-Walter Steinmeier. The parties exchanged opinions on the meeting of policy directors of the foreign ministries of Russia, Germany, France and Ukraine that took place in Berlin on 5 January 2015, as well as on the current situation in southeastern Ukraine. In this context, the diplomats noted the need to reinforce the emerging positive trends in the peaceful settlement of the Ukrainian crisis by ensuring the ceasefire and the exchange of prisoners, resolving the humanitarian issues in the region, beginning as soon as possible true constitutional reform involving all the regions and political forces of Ukraine. The ministers stressed the importance of strict observance of the Minsk agreement by all the parties to the conflict and with international support.
The parties agreed to continue discussions of the situation in Ukraine in the bilateral and Normandy formats at different levels.
