MOSCOW, May 26. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin has told his Brazilian counterpart, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, that Russia is ready for a diplomatic settlement of the Ukrainian crisis, the Kremlin press service said on Friday after their telephone call.

"The Russian president gave principled assessments of the situation around Ukraine and reiterated the Russian side’s openness for dialogue on the political and diplomatic track, which is still blocked by Kiev and its Western sponsors," it said.

According to the Kremlin, the Brazilian leader "outlined his vision of possible mediatory efforts to find ways of settling the conflict in Ukraine."