MOSCOW, February 24. /TASS/. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi discussed the situation in eastern Ukraine within the context of Russia’s recognition of Lugansk and Donetsk People’s Republics, Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement, published Thursday.

"The sides had an exchange of opinion about the current situation in eastern Ukraine within the context of Russia’s recognition of Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics and President Vladimir Putin’s decision, made in response to requests from LPR and DPR heads and sanctioned by Russian Federation Council, to carry out a special military operation in order to protect people, including hundreds of thousands of Russian citizens, from a real threat to their lives and safety, coming from the current Ukrainian regime, who continues its attempts to resolve the ‘Donbass issue’ by force," the Ministry said.

The Ministers also expressed their joint opinion that the current crisis was caused by Kiev’s rejection - encouraged by the US and its allies - of implementation of the Minsk Package of Measures, approved by the UN Security Council.

They also "underscored that Russia and China insist that all states must respect the principle of indivisible security."

The Ministry noted that the sides discussed the implementation of the agreements, achieved at the highest level on February 4. Lavrov congratulated his Chinese counterpart with the successful hosting of Winter Olympics in Beijing.