MOSCOW, May 28. /TASS/. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and his Turkish counterpart Hakan Fidan spoke by phone to discuss ideas for a political settlement of the conflict in Ukraine, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
"There was an exchange of views on the situation around the Ukrainian crisis, including a discussion of initiatives for a political settlement of the conflict in Ukraine," the statement said.
The phone talks took place ahead of Fidan's two-day visit to Kiev starting on Thursday. During the trip, he intends to discuss a peace settlement of the Ukrainian conflict.
Fidan paid a working visit to Moscow from May 26-27 and was received by Russian President Vladimir Putin. He also held talks with presidential aide Vladimir Medinsky and Lavrov. The Turkish foreign minister reiterated the country’s readiness to accept a new round of negotiations on Ukraine and help with a peaceful settlement of the conflict.
Earlier on Wednesday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that a Russian delegation headed by presidential aide Vladimir Medinsky is ready to present Ukraine in Istanbul on June 2 with a Russian memorandum on all aspects of removing the root causes of the crisis.
Russia and Ukraine held talks in Turkey on May 16, agreeing to exchange 1,000 prisoners each, present a vision of a possible ceasefire, spelling out details, and to continue communication. The head of the Russian delegation, presidential aide Vladimir Medinsky, said Russia was satisfied with the outcome of the meeting. He also said Ukraine had asked for direct talks between the leaders of the countries, and Russia took the request "under advisement.".