MOSCOW, February 15. /TASS/. Russia hopes that the current chairman of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) will facilitate the settlement of the crisis in Ukraine, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said at a press conference following talks with his Polish counterpart and OSCE Chairman-in-Office Zbigniew Rau on Tuesday.

"We gave specific attention to the Ukrainian crisis, confirmed the lack of alternatives to the implementation of the Minsk Package of Measures," he said. "We hope that the current chairmanship, including through its representative in Ukraine and in the Contact Group, will facilitate the advancement in this direction, as speedy and responsible as possible," the top diplomat added.

The Russian top diplomat also highlighted the necessity to ensure the impartial observation of the situation in Ukraine by the forces of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission. "We expect from its leadership constructive working interaction with the authorities of Donetsk and Lugansk as the mandate of this mission, approved by the OSCE Permanent Council, requires," he added.

The Russian foreign minister noted that, according to this mandate, the mission should not ignore human and media rights violations across Ukraine. "Which, unfortunately, we do not often see in those reports that the mission publishes," he pointed out.