"The situation in southeastern Ukraine has escalated sharply. Radical and nationalist forces in Kiev are responsible for the latest escalation. This was documented by the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission’s reports," Lavrov told the Izvestiya newspaper.
"Ukraine is evidently violating its obligations on Minsk agreements which it seemingly does not intend to implement. Instead of making efforts to reach stable peace, the Kiev authorities are trying hard to achieve a military solution," Lavrov said.
Lavrov also noted that Russia, the United States, Germany and France were united in the need for dialogue between the conflicting sides to the crisis in the eastern Ukrainian region of Donbass.
"There is no alternative to the Minsk agreements. Our contacts with our foreign partners, first of all with the Normandy Four, as well as with the United States show that even amid our differences in views on the situation in Ukraine we are united in the need for dialogue between the sides to the conflict to seek accord and resolution," Lavrov said.
