Putin, Poroshenko, Merkel and Hollande meet in Minsk to discuss Ukraine (VIDEO)

© AP Photo/Mykola Lazarenko/Pool

The summit follows recent contacts between Russian President Vladimir Putin, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande last week, as well as preparatory work by respective foreign ministers and a meeting of the Contact Group on Ukraine.

Before the summit began, Russian President Vladimir Putin shook hands with his Ukrainian counterpart Petro Poroshenko and exchanged a few words, Rossiya-1 TV channel reports. Putin sat in front of Poroshenko, Hollande and Merkel sat on a sofa between the Russian and Ukrainian leaders.

At the same time, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov talked with his German colleague Frank-Walter Steinmeier and his French counterpart Laurent Fabius.

Earlier it was reported that Russian President Vladimir Putin, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande, comprising the so-called Normandy quartet, have arrived in Minsk to hold talks on Ukrainian reconciliation.

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Putin, Merkel and Hollande are also accompanied by foreign ministers.

President Poroshenko has met with Belarussian President Alexander Lukashenko before the reconciliation talks at the Minsk Palace of Independence.

The summit talks on Ukraine peace settlement conducted in the Normandy format will include leaders of France, Germany, Russia and Ukraine. French President Francois Hollande, Russian President Vladimir Putin and German Chancellor Angela Merkel will be accompanied by foreign ministers at the talks.

The envoys of the self-proclaimed people's republics of Donetsk and Luhansk, Denis Pushilin and Vladislav Deinego, will hold a separate meeting with OSCE representative Heidi Tagliavini, Russian Ambassador to Ukraine Mikhail Zurabov and former Ukrainian president Leonid Kuchma.

The summit follows recent contacts between Merkel, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, and French President Francois Hollande last week, as well as preparatory meetings of respective foreign ministers and the Contact Group on Ukraine.

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Comment: Some live updates from RT:

16:32 GMT: Poroshenko has said he is "crossing his fingers" that today's meeting will be successful and enter the annuals of world diplomacy.

17:33 GMT: Negotiations have gotten underway in Independence Palace's Dipservice Hall, TASS news agency reports. Apart from the 'Normandy Four, 'representatives of the self-declared republics of Donetsk and Lugansk, Denis Pushilin and Vladislav Deinego, former Ukrainian president Leonid Kuchma, Russian Ambassador to Ukraine Mikhail Zurabov, and OSCE (the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe) special representative Heidi Tagliavini will also take part in a separate closed-door contact group meeting.

17:43 GMT: The United Nations expects the Normandy Four negotiations in Minsk to result in a cessation of hostilities in the east of Ukraine, Stefan Dyuzharrik, a spokesman for UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, has said. "We look forward to positive results," Dyuzharrik said. "We want to see a cessation of hostilities and to reach an agreement, which will be followed by all parties."

18:38 GMT: The Minsk talks have continued in an expanded format. Putin, Hollande, Merkel, and Poroshenko have been joined by their states' foreign ministers, Interfax-Ukraine reports.

18:38 GMT: All sides of the talks are "willing to reach positive results," Belarus Foreign Minister Vladimir Makey has said. "We have had an opportunity to speak to each of the sides and we see that each [of them] is willing to reach a positive result," he said, as quoted by RIA Novosti.

18:47 GMT: President Poroshenko left the room where talks between the leaders have been taking place. He continued to the second floor of the palace, but was back in about 15 minutes.

19:13 GMT: The four leaders are planning to sign a joint declaration on the implementation of the Minsk agreement, a source in the Belarusian capital has told Interfax-Ukraine. "The signing of a joint declaration on the implementation of the Minsk agreements is planned," the source said.

It is also expected that a tripartite contact group in Minsk will agree on implementation plan for the Minsk agreements. "It is expected that the leaders of the 'Normandy format' will support this plan," he added.

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