Moscow, June 8 (IANS): Russia is ready for a dialogue with Ukraine only when there are no artillery fires in the country, head of Russian parliament's upper house, Valentina Matviyenko said.
"We're ready for talks, we'll hold negotiations and we'll meet," Xinhua quoted Matviyenko as saying.
Stressing that "artillery fire is unacceptable for such meetings and talks", Matviyenko insisted that Ukraine "terminate the punitive operation."
Petro Poroshenko was sworn in Saturday as the fifth Ukrainian president at an inauguration ceremony held in Kiev.
Matviyenko said that Petro Poroshenko should now make it clear that his country cannot overcome the crisis without Russia.
"It is impossible to resolve the political and economic crisis in Ukraine without Russia," she said.
The Ukrainian government has launched an "anti-terror" operation since April against insurgents in eastern Ukraine, accusing Russia of fomenting the unrest in the country.
The toll of the separatist uprising has risen to 181, with some 300 injured.