The Kremlin said on Wednesday President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian leader Petro Poroshenko had agreed on steps towards peace in eastern Ukraine but a ceasefire had not been agreed between Moscow and Kiev because Russia is not a party to the conflict.

Poroshenko's press office said in a statement that Moscow and Kiev had agreed on a "permanent ceasefire" in the Donbass region of eastern Ukraine.

Russian news agency RIA quoted Dmitry Peskov, Putin's press secretary, as saying: "Putin and Poroshenko really discussed the steps that would contribute to a ceasefire between the militia and the Ukrainian forces. Russia cannot physically agree to a ceasefire because it is not a party to the conflict."