MOSCOW, March 31 (RIA Novosti) - No meetings are currently scheduled between the Russian and Ukrainian foreign ministries, a senior Russian diplomat said Monday.
"Sergei [Lavrov] has not yet returned from Paris, but when he returns, I'm sure he'll let us know," Deputy Foreign Minister Grigory Karasin said in regard to a possible meeting between Lavrov and acting Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Deschytsia.
Relations between Russia and Ukraine have plunged to unprecedented lows this year amid the unconstitutional ouster of President Viktor Yanukovych and the subsequent decision by residents of Crimea to leave Ukraine and rejoin Russia.
Russia maintains the new Western-backed authorities in Kiev, who seized power in a coup last month, lack authority as they were not democratically elected to lead the country.
Moscow has repeatedly insisted that President Viktor Yanukovych, who fled Ukraine to resurface in southern Russia, remains the only legitimate head of state until elections are held.
The authorities of Crimea also refused to recognize the legitimacy of the Kiev government and announced a referendum on rejoining Russia. The reunification treaty was signed in late March, after some 97 percent of voters supported the move.
