German Chancellor Angela Merkel said that Presidents Vladimir Putin and Petro Poroshenko had moved closer to one another during the talks. Footage released prior to the meeting showed the Russian and Ukrainian leaders shaking hands.
Hollande and Merkel agreed that the talks, which lasted almost five hours, concluded with a positive outlook.
Thus, the four leaders managed to reconcile issues concerning the withdrawal of heavy weapons in Eastern Ukraine, Merkel said. At the same time, according to a later statement by Putin's spokesperson Dmitry Peskov, pullout of light weaponry from the region is set to begin on Saturday.