Putin urged to bring Ukraine separatists into talks

Paris: France and Germany urged Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday to use his influence to put pressure on pro-Moscow separatists in Ukraine to come to the negotiating table. In a conference call, President Francois Hollande and German Chancellor Angela asked Putin to help organise a Contact Group meeting before July 5 in order to define the conditions for a ceasefire. "To this end, they asked President Putin to intervene with the separatists in order to bring them into negotiations and to find an accord with the Ukrainian authorities," a statement from the French presidency said.