Russia says not involved in recent Ukraine escalation

BRISBANE Australia (Reuters) - Russia was not involved in the recent escalation of military activity in south-eastern Ukraine and supported the implementation of the ceasefire agreed in Minsk in September, a Kremlin spokesman said on Saturday.

"We are not involved," Kremlin foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov told reporters at a G20 meeting in Australia.

Russia had met with other BRIC leaders on Saturday, who had all offered their support over the matter, he said.

"They all said that the sanctions are illegal, that they breach UN charter (rules) and hamper economic recovery. We were not raising this issue ourselves. These leaders said this by themselves without a hint from our side."

(Reporting by Alexei Anishchuk; Writing by Lincoln Feast; Editing by John Mair)