German Chancellor Angela Merkel announced Thursday that the European Union will discuss further sanctions against Russia on its special summit in Brussels Saturday.
"We want diplomatic solutions and we will persist in our efforts. However, we realise that things have deteriorated again in the past few days," Xinhua quoted Merkel as saying during a press conference, referring to the latest reports of Russian troop's incursion into Ukraine.
Merkel's words came as tensions escalated in eastern Ukraine.
Ukraine and the West Wednesday accused Russia of launching a new incursion into Ukraine by sending its troops and hardware in the Donetsk region. Russia, however, has denied the charges.
Earlier Thursday, Ukraine's National Security and Defence Council said "Russian troops" have captured the Ukrainian key port of Novoazovsk and several towns and villages in Donetsk region.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has canceled his planned visit to Turkey amid the deepening turmoil.
