MOSCOW. March 20 (Interfax) - UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon will pay a short visit to Moscow on Thursday and will then travel to Kyiv.
The UN secretary-general's press service reports that Ban would come to Russia on March 20 and to Ukraine on March 21.
While in Moscow, Ban is to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, and other officials.
A Moscow-based diplomatic source had told Interfax earlier that Ban might be received by the Russian president during his visit to Moscow.
The UN secretary-general plans negotiations with Ukrainian interim President Oleksander Turchynov, Prime Minister Arseny Yatsenyuk, and other Ukrainian officials on March 21, the UN reported.
Ban's visits to Russia and Ukraine are intended as part of diplomatic efforts toward resolving the current crisis in a peaceful way, it said.
Ban's spokesman Farhan Haq said at a recent news conference in New York that Ban would try to determine at the negotiations in Moscow and Kyiv how direct dialogue could be arranged between the Russian and Ukrainian authorities, which he believes could be an important stage toward a diplomatic solution of the Crimea issue, Haq said.
Ban plans to find out during his trip to Russia and Ukraine whether progress could be made in resolving the matter, he said.
The UN is sure that the disputes between Moscow and Kyiv could be resolved peacefully, he said.