Some 70% of the Russian troops believed to have been in Ukraine have withdrawn back across the border, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said, reports GHN based on CNN.
"This is another hope that peaceful initiatives have a good perspective," Poroshenko is quoted as saying during a Cabinet meeting in Kiev on Wednesday.
The remarks came several days into a shaky ceasefire deal between Ukrainian forces and pro-Russia rebels, signed last Friday after nearly five months of fighting in eastern Ukraine.
The Presidents of Russia and Ukraine are "broadly satisfied" with the status of the ceasefire, a Kremlin aide said Wednesday.
One woman killed during Ukraine ceasefire
President Vladimir Putin and Poroshenko spoke by phone Tuesday night, Kremlin foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov told Russia's Interfax news agency.
"On the whole, satisfaction was expressed on our part and by the Ukrainian side with how the ceasefire is being observed although it is a difficult process," Ushakov said.
Moscow has repeatedly denied allegations by Kiev and the West that it is sending Russian troops over the border into Ukraine.
Meanwhile, EU leaders are weighing whether to pull the trigger on tougher sanctions against Russia.
Talks are planned Thursday in Brussels among diplomats from the 28 member nations, following a decision Monday to put on hold for at least a "few days" a new package of economic penalties against Russia over its encroachment in Ukraine.
The delay offered more time to assess the effectiveness of the ceasefire without risking further trade retaliation by the Kremlin, which has said it will respond if new sanctions come into force.