French Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Jean-Yves Le Drian, who is taking part in the Munich Security Conference, had a telephonic conversation Saturday with his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov. This is noted in a statement released by the French foreign ministry, TASS reports.

"Le Drian expressed his deep concern over the escalation of the situation in eastern Ukraine in recent days," the statement added.

“The numerous violations of the ceasefire verified by the OSCE mission are contrary to the commitments made in the recent exchanges of the Normandy format [talks between Germany, Russia, Ukraine, and France],” also said a statement from the French foreign ministry

According to the note, Le Drian expressed his certainty “about the united response of the Europeans and their allies to such an affront,” with “massive sanctions.” 

“The French presidency of the Council of the European Union will assume all its responsibilities,” he said. 

The head of French diplomacy noted, however, that despite everything, there is still room for dialogue on security guarantees.