Ukraine president meets UN political chief

Kiev, May 7 (IANS) Ukrainian acting President Alexandr Turchynov held talks here Wednesday with Jeffrey Feltman, the UN under secretary-general for political affairs, centering on political issues and the security situation in Ukraine.

The talks focused on the ongoing violence in the eastern part of the country and the upcoming presidential elections scheduled for May 25, Xinhua reported citing a statement issued by parliament's press service.

Noting that the security situation in eastern Ukraine remained bad, Turchynov accused Russia of "fomenting the unrest in the Lugansk and Donetsk regions with propaganda".

"Aggression towards our two eastern regions continues. Residents of these areas are under the influence of Russian propaganda," Turchynov was quoted as saying.

Claiming that pro-Russian activists are using Ukrainians from the embattled regions as a "human shield", Turchynov said that the government launched its military operation against the rebels to "avoid civilian casualties".

Turchynov pledged to intensify efforts to find means to de-escalate the situation ahead of the presidential election and voiced his hope that tensions would ease after the voting.

For his part, Feltman said the UN supported the government in Kiev and stood ready to assist with a resolution of the tense situation in the East European country.