US Secretary of State John Kerry will meet his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov on Sunday for suddenly arranged talks in Paris as diplomatic efforts to resolve Cold War-style tensions over Ukraine’s crisis gained momentum.

US Secretary of State John Kerry will meet his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov on Sunday for suddenly arranged talks in Paris as diplomatic efforts to resolve Cold War-style tensions over Ukraine's crisis gained momentum.

In a first effort to temper the worst East-West impasse in decades, Russian leader Vladimir Putin phoned US President Barack Obama on Friday to discuss either sides' proposals in what has become a tug-of-war over Ukraine's future.

Lavrov later sought to ease diplomatic tensions by vowing his country had no intention of sending in what Kiev estimates are 100,000 troops gathered on Ukraine's borders.

"We have absolutely no intention and no interests in crossing the Ukrainian border," he told Russian state television. "We (Russia and the West) are getting closer in our positions."