BREAKING: Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on September 1 that the Russian military would not intervene in Ukraine.
Kyiv and the West say it has already done so.
Lavrov told foreign policy students there would be no Russian "military intervention" in eastern Ukraine, where pro-Russian separatists have been fighting Ukrainian government forces since April in a conflict that has killed more than 2,600 people.
NATO recently estimated there were at least 1,000 Russian soldiers were in Ukraine.
Lavrov said participants at a meeting in Minsk on September 1 should seek a cease-fire.
He said an immediate truce is needed but that Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko's cease-fire plan amounted to a demand that separatists disarm and allow themselves to be destroyed.
He said the United States and EU must urge Kyiv to withdraw government forces from postions from which they can hit civilians.
Barring any major developments, this concludes the live blogging for today. See you again tomorrow.
More from our news desk on Putin's latest comments:
Russian President Vladimir Putin said talks on ending the conflict in eastern Ukraine must discuss statehood for the region.
In an interview to Russia's TV Channel One aired on August 31 Putin said: "We need to immediately begin substantive talks…on questions of the political organization of society and statehood for southeastern Ukraine with the goal of protecting the lawful interests of the people who live there."
Putin also said that Moscow could not stand aside "when people are being shot at almost at point blank" in Ukraine.
The West accuses Russia of supporting pro-Moscow separatist rebels who are fighting Ukrainian government forces.
Moscow denies the accusations.
The European Union has threatened Russia with new trade sanctions if Moscow fails to start reversing its action in Ukraine.
BREAKING: Russian President Vladimir Putin said talks on ending the conflict in eastern Ukraine must discuss statehood for the region.