Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and the United States Secretary of State John Kerry have expressed their support for the Organization for Security and Co-operation Europe (OSCE) mission's efforts in Ukraine and called for swift de-escalation of the conflict in southeastern Ukraine, the Russian Foreign Ministry said.

On December 4 Lavrov and Kerry met on the sidelines of a meeting of the OSCE foreign ministers in Basel.

"When discussing the situation in the South-East of Ukraine, the parties expressed their support for the efforts of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission in this country and stressed the increasing importance of a swift de-escalation of the conflict in this region. Lavrov particularly underscored the need for consistent adherence to the Minsk accords, ensuring a sustainable truce and (the need) for Kyiv to continue the direct dialogue with Donetsk and Luhansk," the ministry said on its website on Thursday.

The pair also exchanged their views on a number of pressing international and regional issues, including the situation in the Israeli-Palestinian peace process and prospects for resolving Syria's domestic conflict, the statement said.

"The minister and the state secretary expressed their mutual keenness to give substantial impetus to the deeply deadlocked Middle Eastern process, with an emphasis on a comprehensive solution to the Palestinian problem. Both sides confirmed the importance for the Syrian government and a broad spectrum of political opposition forces to reach durable agreements under the principles of the June 30, 2012 Geneva Communique," the statement said.

"The diplomats acknowledged the consonance of the Russian and U.S. approaches at talks between the six international negotiators and Iran over Iran's nuclear program," the statement said.

"They stressed the significance of swiftly reaching a comprehensive agreement which should address all existing concerns with respect to the purposes of Iran's nuclear program while guaranteeing Tehran the right to develop peaceful nuclear technologies under total control of the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency)," the Russian Foreign Ministry said.