Countries in the "Weimar Triangle" are asking Russia to 'refrain from any escalation' in Ukraine

The foreign ministers of Germany, France and Poland, meeting in the so-called 'Weimar Triangle' organization on Monday urged Russia to "refrain from any further escalation" in the Ukrainian case.

"Russia now has a big responsibility. We urge Russia to refrain from any further escalation of the situation in Ukraine", insisted the foreign ministers of the three countries in a joint statement.

"We advocate forcefully for meaningful dialogue between Ukraine and Russia, which is an essential step" to ease the situation, stresses Frank-Walter Steinmeier (Germany), Laurent Fabius (France) and Radoslaw Sikorski (Poland).

"We are in favor of a common European response to this challenge. We will not accept a policy which seeks to divide Ukraine or transpose the action undertaken in Crimea, other parts of Ukraine or other countries of Eastern Europe," declared the three ministers.

They also expressed the wish that the countries of the eastern border of the European Union (EU) should not be placed in the position of choosing between the EU and Russia.

"The partnerships and bilateral agreements between the EU and its partners (East) are not directed against Russia," according to the statement.

In this regard, the Ministers propose launching "a discussion of the EU/Russia with Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia over the consequences of both of the parts of the association" between the EU and the 'Eastern partners'.

According to Berlin, the Russian President Vladimir Putin transmited on Monday to the German Chancellor Angela Merkel, that Russia will partially withdraw its troops mobilized along the border with Ukraine.

In a telephone conversation, the two leaders "have evoked other possible measures to stabilize the situation in Ukraine and Transnistria," according to a press release from the German government.

German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, has reacted cautiously to the news from Russia."It looks like a small expansion signal," he said in Berlin.