NATO's Stoltenberg tells Russia's Lavrov to pull out of Ukraine

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg arrives for a joint meeting of European Union foreign and defence ministers at the EU Council in Brussels, Belgium, May 18, 2015. REUTERS/Francois Lenoir

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said on Tuesday he had told Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov that Russia must withdraw all troops and heavy weapons from Ukraine and end its support for separatists.

The western military alliance's chief added that he had informed Lavrov, after a meeting in Brussels, that he was concerned about the large number of military exercises carried out by Russia at short notice.