Poroshenko urges Merkel to help settle eastern uprising

Ukraine's new President Petro Poroshenko has urged German Chancellor Angel Merkel and other world leaders to get more involved in helping settle the pro-Russian uprising raging in the industrial east, his office said Monday.

"The involvement of Merkel and other world leaders is critically important to a settlement of the conflict in eastern Ukraine," his office quoted the Western-backed leader as telling Merkel by phone on Sunday.