The number of people killed in eastern Ukraine since last April has now topped 6,000, despite successive ceasefires, a UN spokesman said Monday.
US President Barack Obama and German Chancellor Angela Merkel agree on the importance of de-escalating the situation in Ukraine.
Russian President Vladimir Putin says that Russia would only use military force in Ukraine as a last resort, in remarks apparently intended to ease East-West tension over fears of war.
As the West has reacted with alarm to Russia's approval of military action in Ukraine, tensions might further escalate.
Deposed Ukranian president Viktor Yanukovych formally asked Moscow to deploy Russian troops to re-establish law and order in his country, Russia told the UN Security Council on Monday.
Members of the Ukrainian cabinet have started consultations with their Russian counterparts to de-escalate tensions between the two countries.
Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, on Tuesday discussed China-Russia ties and the Ukraine crisis in a phone call.
The White House announced on Tuesday that the United States will provide $1 billion of loan guarantees to help insulate vulnerable Ukrainians from the effects of reduced energy subsidies.
The Ukrainian parliament ratified a deal Tuesday in which the European Union (EU) will provide Kiev with a 610-million-euro (around $840 million) loan.
What happened in Ukraine could only be described as anti-constitutional coup and armed seizure of power, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Tuesday.
Washington suspends bilateral trade, investment and military engagements with Russia over crisis in Ukraine.
Russia disagreed with NATO's allegations that Moscow was conducting military escalation in Ukraine's southern Crimea region.
The Ukraine crisis will be a major subject at the conference, which began Monday. Conference organizers arranged a session specifically devoted to the issue.
Copyright 1995 - . All rights reserved. The content (including but not limited to text, photo, multimedia information, etc) published in this site belongs to China Daily Information Co (CDIC). Without written authorization from CDIC, such content shall not be republished or used in any form. Note: Browsers with 1024*768 or higher resolution are suggested for this site.
License for publishing multimedia online 0108263 Registration Number: 130349 
