Lavrov: Russia, Ukraine making real progress on humanitarian channels

Russia and Ukraine are making real progress on humanitarian issues, and the channel of communication needs to be maintained, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said at a meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and members of the government, Report informs via TASS.

"I believe that under all circumstances it is always better to have a channel of communication, this allows us to resolve humanitarian issues first and foremost, and it is precisely the coordination of reciprocal humanitarian steps as gestures of goodwill, as a measure to strengthen trust, that is probably necessary at this stage, especially since here, as I have already said, there is real progress," he noted.

Lavrov added that the process of direct negotiations between the parties is important, useful and working.

"The process of direct negotiations, which you previously agreed on in one of your last conversations with (US President) Donald Trump over the phone, is working. Both rounds, as we know, have yielded concrete results," the head of the Foreign Ministry noted, explaining that this concerns, in particular, agreements related to the exchange of prisoners of war.