Ukraine crisis: EU invites Moscow to talks on Kiev pact

The EU has said it is willing to include Russia in discussions with Kiev about a planned trade agreement that sparked the crisis in Ukraine, the BBC reported.

European Commission head Jose Manuel Barroso made the offer in a telephone call with President Putin on Friday.

EU officials said the move was "significant" and reflected a "new climate" in the negotiations.

Meanwhile, Ukraine's defence ministry said one of its planes had been shot down over the city of Luhansk.

A short statement said the plane was carrying Ukrainian servicemen and military equipment. It said the incident had resulted in deaths but did not say how many.

As many as 49 people were said to be on board.

In a separate development, the US said it was confident that tanks being used by separatists in eastern Ukraine came from Russia.

"Russia will claim these tanks were taken from Ukrainian forces, but no Ukrainian tank units have been operating in that area," a US state department official spokewoman said.

"We are confident that these tanks came from Russia," she added.

The appearance of the tanks, filmed in various towns in the Donetsk region, sparked a row between Kiev and Moscow.

Russia has denied allegations that the tanks had entered Ukraine from its territory.