Russia calls on Kiev to extend the law on the special status of Donbas and start a dialogue with representatives of the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk people's republics in eastern Ukraine, Boris Gryzlov, Russia's envoy to the Contact Group on Ukraine, said Tuesday

The self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) has informed the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe's Special Monitoring Mission (OSCE SMM) to Ukraine about the completion of the three-day process of disengagement of troops near the settlement of Petrivske in Donbas, a DPR spokesman from the Joint Center for Control and Coordination on ceasefire (JCCC) said on Tuesday

Russian President Vladimir Putin and German Chancellor Angela Merkel discussed in phone talks on Monday the settlement of the conflict in eastern Ukraine and reaffirmed the drive to coordinate efforts in Normandy Four format, the Kremlin press service reported

The All-Russia State Television and Radio Broadcasting Company (VGTRK) has denied reports that its film crew came under fire in eastern Ukraine earlier on Monday

The self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) fully withdrew its forces from the area near the village of Petrivske on Saturday as part of troop disengagement in the conflict-hit region, a DPR spokesman from the Joint Centre for Control and Coordination on ceasefire told reporters

The people's militia of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) began disengaging forces on a site near the contact line in the Donbas near the village of Petrivske, a Sputnik correspondent reported from the scene