MOSCOW, July 18. /TASS/. Presidents Vladimir Putin of Russia and Emmanuel Macron of France have discussed ways to resolve the Ukrainian crisis during a telephone conversation, the Kremlin press service said in a statement on Thursday.

"The parties considered ways to resolve the domestic conflict in Ukraine and expressed readiness to step up efforts in that area, particularly by boosting the Normandy talks," the statement reads.

The telephone call was initiated by Paris, the Kremlin press service added.

The Normandy Four format was established in 2014 to hold negotiations on the Ukrainian crisis. During the celebrations of the 70th D-Day anniversary in Normandy, the leaders of Russia, France, Germany and Ukraine discussed ways of settling the conflict in eastern Ukraine for the first time. A number of telephone conversations and meetings involving the four countries’ leaders and foreign ministers have taken place since then.

On July 12, advisers to the Normandy Four leaders held their first meeting following the 2019 presidential election in Ukraine. According to earlier reports, such meetings usually pave the way for summits.