MOSCOW, February 13. /TASS/. Moscow is ready to take the African initiative for resolving the Ukraine crisis into account in its work, Russian Foreign Ministry Africa Department Head Vsevolod Tkachenko said in an interview with TASS.

"A joint statement was issued on the sidelines of the Russia-Africa summit following talks between [Russian President] Vladimir Putin and the African leaders who put forward their peace initiative. We are ready for more joint work with our partners on the basis of it [the peace initiative]," the Russian diplomat said.

According to Tkachenko, Russia appreciates the ambitions of various countries and international associations to contribute to resolving the Ukraine crisis, or to mediate talks between Russia and Ukraine. So far, more than 20 nations, including African countries, and a number of regional organizations have come up with similar initiatives, he added.

"We can mostly see here the resolve among African countries and multilateral organizations to take a more active role in the international arena as they seek to help address both local and global issues," Tkachenko emphasized.