Putin phones Obama to discuss Ukraine tensions, Islamic State

Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Barack Obama have spoken by telephone to discuss tensions in eastern Ukraine and the fight against the Islamic State in the Middle East. The last time the men spoke was in February, the White House said.

Both the White House and the Kremlin offered similar statements describing the conversation, on Thursday evening. The White House said Putin initiated the call to Obama.

The White House said Obama told Putin that Russia needs to meet commitments it made in Minsk, Belarus, earlier this year, including the removal of troops and equipment from Ukrainian territory. The Kremlin said the two leaders agreed that US Assistant Secretary of State Victoria Nuland and Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Grigory Karasin will discuss implementation of these agreements.

The call came on the same day NATO's supreme allied commander cited a continuous flow of ammunition and other military supplies from Russia across the border to Ukraine.

The Kremlin said the two men devoted "significant attention" to confronting terrorism and the Islamic State in particular and agreed to have Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and US Secretary of State John Kerry meet to review the issue.

The White House and the Kremlin said the two leaders also addressed continued bloodshed in Syria and agreed on the importance of unity among the six world powers negotiating to restrict Iran's nuclear capabilities.