Germany, France, Russia agree need Minsk measures faster

(Reuters) - German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Francois Hollande and Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed in a phone call to discuss the Ukraine crisis on Friday that the measures of the Minsk accord need to be implemented more quickly.

"All the parties were in agreement that the implementation of the package of measures in the Minsk accord needs to move forward more quickly," a German government spokeswoman said when asked for details of the telephone conversation.

Earlier, the Kremlin reported that Putin, Hollande and Merkel stressed the need for a political solution to the conflict in the Donbass.

The German government spokeswoman said they agreed it was important to introduce steps "as quickly as possible" for a lasting stabilisation of security in eastern Ukraine as well as the holding of local elections in the Donbass region.

(Reporting by Erik Kirschbaum; Editing by Paul Carrel)