France urges ‘roadmap’ for Ukraine peace

PARIS: French President Francois Hollande called on all parties in the Ukraine conflict to draw up a roadmap to settle the dispute, after talks with his Ukrainian counterpart on Thursday.

The aim would be to help Ukraine regain control of its borders with Russia, he added.

Hollande´s office issued the statement after talks by telephone with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko.

On Wednesday, he spoke by telephone with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Russian President Vladimir Putin about organising a summit on the conflict.

Hollande wanted all parties in the conflict to commit to a detailed "roadmap" clearly setting out the steps required for "the reestablishment of Ukraine´s control of its border with Russia", Thursday´s statement said.

Moscow´s relations with Kiev are in crisis over Russia´s 2014 annexation of Crimea and its support of a separatist, pro-Russian insurgency in eastern Ukraine that has claimed nearly 10,000 lives.

France is pursuing efforts to organise the summit on the conflict despite tensions with Russia after Putin cancelled a visit to Paris scheduled for next week.

France has said Putin pulled out after Hollande insisted they hold talks during the visit on Russia´s role in the Syrian conflict.

On Sunday, Hollande accused Syrian troops of committing war crimes in Aleppo with Russian support.

In comments to French television on Wednesday Putin dismissed the war crimes remarks as "rhetoric".