Representatives of Ukraine and Russia were due to meet on Wednesday for the first time since their border tensions began to flare late last year, spurring fears that Moscow could launch an invasion.

The meeting in Paris was set to convene at noon (1100 GMT) and bring together political advisors in the four-country Normandy format, which also included France and Germany.

The talks would focus on humanitarian measures as well as the possibility of holding formal negotiations over the status of the Donbas region in eastern Ukraine, sources close to the French presidency.

Armed conflict between Ukraine and the separatists broke out in 2014 but has since turned into a stalemate with regular eruptions of shelling and skirmishes.

Starting in November, the United States and Europe began sounding the alarm about a large buildup of Russian troops on the Ukrainian border.

It prompted worries that Moscow was planning a military offensive that would dramatically escalate their simmering conflict.

Germany and France have been mediating in the conflict since 2014 but a peace settlement plan they negotiated among the parties involved in eastern Ukraine has long been stalled.

Trilateral talks were held at the beginning of January.

German and French representatives travelled to Moscow and Kyiv, but representatives of Ukraine and Russia did not sit together at the negotiating table.

According to UN estimates, more than 14,000 people have been killed in fighting between Ukrainian government troops and separatists loyal to the Kremlin in the Donbas. 

(dpa/NAN)