putin_poroshenko_140826I'm not sure exactly why I'm posting it, but this felt significant.

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Russian and Ukrainian leader meet for face-to-face talks in Belarus - Kremlin

The much anticipated one-on-one meeting between Presidents Vladimir Putin and Petro Poroshenko has begun in Minsk after hours of talks between the Eurasian Customs Union, EU and Kiev in the Belarusian capital.

"The bilateral talks are now under way," said Dmitry Peskov, the Russian president's press secretary.

It is the first sit-down meeting between the two heads of state, as they only had a brief, informal conversation during the D-Day anniversary commemorations in Normandy, France, on June 6, a day before Poroshenko's inauguration as Ukrainian president.

Earlier, Peskov said that "there are many issues to be discussed" between Putin and Poroshenko if their meeting were to take place.

These are "the discussion of the Ukrainian domestic crisis and the terrible humanitarian disaster in the east of the country, as well as the need for a ceasefire," he said.

Another important topic is relations between Russia and Ukraine in the light of the signing of the association agreement with the EU by Kiev, Peskov added.

The negotiations are part of a Eurasian Customs Union (Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan) summit, which also includes the Ukrainian president and representatives of the European Commission.

Arriving for the forum in Minsk on Tuesday noon, Putin and Poroshenko greeted each other with a handshake.

Poroshenko stressed the importance of Tuesday's forum, saying that "the fate of the world and Europe" is being decided in the Belarusian capital.

"The purpose of my visit to Minsk is to stop the bloodshed and to start the process of finding a political compromise," the Ukrainian president said.

"The interests of the people of Donbass should and will be taken into account" in this solution, he added.

In an opening statement, Poroshenko also expressed confidence that none of the participants of the talks question the independence of the Ukrainian state and the right of its people to determine their present and future.

He called Ukraine "a responsible member of the international community," saying that it demands respect for its sovereignty and territorial integrity.

"The Ukrainian people have made their choice in favor of a unitary democratic European state," Poroshenko said.

Vladimir Putin said that he's absolutely confident that the Ukrainian crisis "can't be resolved by further escalation of the military scenario, without considering the best interests of the southeastern regions of the country, without a peace dialogue with their representatives."

Russia's president stressed that Moscow is interested in not only maintaining its cooperation with Ukraine, but even expanding it.

However, Putin expressed doubt that the two countries would be able to achieve this goal if Kiev's Association Agreement with the European Union comes into force.

Moscow will be forced to implement countermeasures if this happens, the Russian president said.

"We do not want to discriminate against anybody," he said. "We are simply going to implement a standard trade regime regarding Ukraine – the same that is used in relations between Russia and the EU."

Switching over to EU trading standards and nixing duty-free trade with Russia would cost Ukraine €165 billion over the next 10 years, Putin warned.