07/02/2015 10:54
Leaders upbeat on Ukraine talks
The leaders of Russia, France and Germany have held "constructive and substantive" talks on ending the conflict in Ukraine, the BBC reported, citing diplomats.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, France's Francois Hollande and German Chancellor Angela Merkel met for more than four hours in Moscow.
Mr Hollande and Mrs Merkel had brought with them a peace proposal details on which have not been released.
Russia is accused of arming pro-Russian separatists - a claim it denies.
The Kremlin also rejects claims by Ukraine and the West that its regular troops are fighting alongside the rebels in the eastern Donetsk and Luhansk regions.
Clashes have left nearly 5,400 people dead since April, the UN says.
A September ceasefire, signed in Minsk in Belarus, has failed to stop the violence. Since then the rebels have seized more ground, raising alarm in Kiev and among Ukraine's backers.