(MENAFN- The Journal Of Turkish Weekly) The leaders of Russia, France, Germany, and Ukraine spoke by telephone on May 24 about ways to settle the conflict in eastern Ukraine.
The Kremlin said Russia offered proposals which it "coordinated" with Russia-backed separatists on holding elections in the Donbas region and granting amnesty to combatants in the conflict. After the call, the leaders issued a statement "recalling their commitment to the Minsk peace accords and their determination to do everything to ensure they are implemented in full as quickly as possible," according to French President Francois Hollande's office. The Kremlin said the leaders emphasized the need to observe a cease-fire and discussed raising the efficiency of a monitoring mission by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. The Kremlin said the leaders discussed giving the OSCE mission additional powers. A February 2015 agreement brokered by France and Germany has helped reduce fighting in the conflict, which started in 2014, but frequent clashes have erupted and efforts to reach a political settlement have stalled.