Obama urges continuing Kazakh help in settling Ukrainian crisis

U.S. President Barack Obama on Wednesday urged Kazakhstan to continue its efforts toward a resolution of the unending Ukrainian crisis, as the Central Asian country will probably host a summit on the unrest in Ukraine's east.

In a conversation over the phone, Obama and his Kazakh counterpart Nursultan Nazarbayev affirmed their "shared interest" in seeking a peaceful resolution to the crisis and agreed to uphold the principles of sovereignty and territorial integrity, the White House said in a statement.

It said Obama once again called for a "full implementation" of the Minsk agreement that was reached in September last year and aimed for a ceasefire in eastern Ukraine, and encouraged Kazakhstan to "continue playing an active role in finding a peaceful outcome" to the crisis.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry on Wednesday accused rebels of attempting "a blatant land grab" as fresh fighting was reported in Ukraine's east, where more than 4,800 people have been killed and over one million others displaced in fighting that broke out in April last year between government troops and the insurgents.

Russia has denied accusations that it is behind the violence in eastern Ukraine.

Leaders of Russia, Ukraine, Germany and France may meet in the Kazakh capital of Astana later this month over the crisis, after a previous summit originally slated for Jan. 15 was postponed due to differences between the conflicting parties, Nazarbayev's press service said last week. Endite