The urgency of the meeting is emphasized by the escalation of violence in eastern Ukraine as the government forces have resumed active military operations against armed militia in the Donbas region.
On Tuesday, sources in the Russian Foreign Ministry confirmed Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov's participation in Wednesday's talks.
According to Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin, "real de-escalation" of violence is expected at a high-level Normandy format summit in the Kazakh capital of Astana, with an exact date yet to be announced.
Despite a ceasefire agreement reached during talks in Minsk, Belarus in September and a "silence regime" introduced in the region on December 9, clashes between Kiev forces and Donbas independence supporters intensified in the first weeks of 2015.
Moscow proposes restoring a previously agreed line of division in eastern Ukraine to end escalation of fighting: http://t.co/QfGLN6puOF
— Yahoo News (@YahooNews) January 21, 2015
The authorities of the Donetsk and Luhansk people's republics repeatedly stated that Kiev was using the pause in violence to strengthen its forces and prepare for a new offensive.
