Moscow: Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke by phone with his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron, on the EU-Belarus migrant crisis as well as the situation in Ukraine, among other topics.

Putin spoke in favour of direct dialogue between representatives from EU member states and Minsk on Tuesday while discussing the situation on the Belarus-EU border, according to the Kremlin.

Putin and Macron also discussed the situation in Ukraine, with Putin "providing specific examples of Kiev's violations of the Minsk agreements, which is the only realistic way towards resolving the internal Ukraine issue." "It was also noted that the Ukrainian authorities are purposefully aggravating the situation on the line of contact, with the complicity of a number of Western countries," the Kremlin said, adding that Ukraine was being supplied with modern weapons, which, according to reports, posed a direct threat to Russia's security.

Putin emphasised the necessity of international talks aimed at obtaining legally binding guarantees to prevent NATO's future eastward expansion and the deployment of weapons that threaten Russia in neighbouring countries, most notably Ukraine.

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