(VOVworld) – Germany and Ukraine have agreed that the Trilateral Contact Group must continue work.

Ukraine's Petro Poroshenko and Germany's Angela Merkel (Photo: Mykhailo Palinchak)

During a phone conversation on Friday between Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and German Chancellor Angela Merkel, the two leaders said the continued operation of the group is an important mechanism to implement the Minsk agreement to peacefully settle the conflict in Donesk and Lugansk in eastern Ukraine. Earlier, Denis Pusilin, the head of the high council of the so-called Donetsk People's Republic said Donesk and Lugansk are ready to go to Minsk to participate in the Trilateral Contact Group’s activities.

A spokesperson for the US Department of Defense Stiv Warren said the US handed over Ukraine the first batch of weapons including three counter-mortar radar systems. The US plans to provide Ukraine a total of 20 radar systems of this kind.