Ukraine's President proposes talks with Putin

Kiev: Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has proposed holding talks with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in the Belarusian capital Minsk.

Addressing Russia's leader in a YouTube video, Zelenskyy said, "We need to talk? We do. Let’s talk. Let’s discuss whose Crimea is and who is not in Donbass."

"I suggest the following company for our conversation: You and I, US President Donald Trump, British Prime Minister Theresa May, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Emmanuel Macron," Zelenskyy said in the address.

Zelenskyy said Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko will be glad to welcome them for talks.

"We do not change or reject any diplomatic formats. We suggest you to talk. We need to talk, don’t we?" he added.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that Russia would consider Zelenskyy's proposal in the new format.

"This is a new initiative. Of course, it will be considered, but so far I cannot give any reaction," Peskov was quoted as saying by Russia’s official news agency TASS.

Violence has plagued Ukraine since the Russian annexation of Crimea in March 2014.

The UN General Assembly voted to proclaim the Russian annexation illegal.

The annexation led Western powers, including the US to impose sanctions on Moscow.

Along with the UN General Assembly, the US and EU do not recognise Crimea as Russian territory.

Violence has also hit the eastern regions of the country, where fighting between Ukraine's armed forces and separatists in the Donbass area has led to 10,000 deaths according to the UN.

An incident near the Sea of Azov last November, in which Russia detained 24 Ukrainian sailors, added to tensions between the two countries.