MINSK, July 31. /ITAR-TASS/. International contact group on East Ukraine settlement has started the meeting in Minsk, said official sources on Thursday.

Trilateral Ukraine-OSCE-Russia group meeting started with participation of Donetsk People’s Republic leadership, a source told ITAR-TASS adding the parties planned to discuss safe access for international experts to Malaysian jet crash site and hostages.

Ukraine former president Leonid Kuchma, Russian Ambassador to Ukraine Mikhail Zurabov and official representative of the OSCE chairman on Ukraine Heidi Tagliavini take part in the meeting initiated by Ukraine President Petro Poroshenko who asked Belarus leader Alexander Lukashenko on July 29 to assist the talks.

Ahead of the meeting, Lukashenko met Kuchma and pledged support for the normalization in Ukraine. “It is vitally important for Belarus life, not for our publicity. Nobody gains publicity on blood and deaths. Therefore, you can be sure, we’ll hold as many events for the group as necessary,” said Lukashenko.