Here's something of an exclusive from RFE/RL's news desk:
BRUSSELS -- A leaked letter from German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier urges the European Union to quickly ease "Russian concerns" regarding the implementation of a free-trade agreement with Ukraine.
Steinmeier's letter to European Commission President Jean-Paul Juncker, which was made available to RFE/RL, calls for a resumption of three-way talks between the EU, Ukraine, and Russia in order to identify "practical solutions."
Russia has voiced opposition to the creation of a Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA), the economic core of a wide ranging Association Agreement concluded in March 2014 by the European Union and Ukraine.
After being postponed amid Russian resistance, the DCFTA is due to enter force by January 1, 2016.
In his letter, dated April 2, Steinmeier urges the European Commission to "use the considerable flexibility that the agreement offers."
He called for a "pragmatic, interest-based and political approach without preconditions."
(Based on reporting by RFE/RL's Brussels corrrespondent Rikard Jozwiak)