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De-escalation in Ukraine possible only if Kiev abandons provocations — Kremlin

Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov Sergei Fadeichev/TASS

Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov

© Sergei Fadeichev/TASS

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Moscow’s bid to make Donbass talks transparent evokes dread in Kiev, says Russian official

MOSCOW, April 14. /TASS/. De-escalation in Ukraine is only possible if the Ukrainian Armed Forces abandon provocative actions, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Wednesday.

"We consider all concern expressed by whomever, including the US, over the movement of our armed forces on Russian territory, groundless. De-escalation on the territory of Ukraine can happen only if the Ukrainian armed forces abandon provocative actions," he said, answering a question on whether the Russian and US leaders came to an understanding when it comes to Ukraine during their phone call on Tuesday.

US President Joe Biden called his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on Tuesday. The Kremlin press service informed that the White House had offered to consider the possibility of holding a face-to-face meeting in the foreseeable future, and that Biden also expressed interest in normalizing bilateral relations and ensuring strategic stability. It is reported that Putin had informed his American colleague of the approaches to the political regulation in Ukraine based on the Minsk Agreements. The leaders agreed to give directives to the corresponding Russian and US agencies to work on the issues mentioned in the phone call.

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