Russia urges United States to push Ukraine government into talks

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry discussed joint efforts by Russia, the United States, the EU and the OSCE to help defuse the crisis in Ukraine in a phone call on Thursday, Russia's Foreign Ministry said. Lavrov "called on the United States to influence the Kiev authorities in order to push them to begin a real de-escalation ... and create the conditions for direct, equitable dialogue with representatives of southeastern regions," it said. (Writing by Steve Gutterman; editing by Andrew Roche)