Ukraine conflict: Merkel takes peace plan to Obama

German Chancellor Angela Merkel has arrived in Washington for talks with President Barack Obama on Monday amid reports of a rift over Ukraine.

As well as discussing a way forward in Ukraine, the pair are likely to discuss a range of other issues including counter-terrorism and trade.

As the crisis in Ukraine intensifies, America says it will stand with Europe but recent talks exposed divisions.
Mrs Merkel has ruled out sending weapons to help Ukraine's military.

The Ukrainian government is locked in a conflict with Russian-backed rebels which has claimed more than 5,300 lives and driven 1.5 million people from their homes.

Ukraine's war: The human cost

The ruined airport at Donetsk, 7 February

5,358 people killed and 12,235 wounded in eastern Ukraine
Fatalities include 298 people on board flight MH17 shot down on 17 July
224 civilians killed in three-week period leading up to 1 February
5.2 million people estimated to be living in conflict areas
921,640 internally displaced people within Ukraine, including 136,216 children
600,000 fled to neighbouring countries of whom more than 400,000 have gone to Russia

Source: Figures from UN High Commissioner for Human Rights 3 February, and UN report, 21 January
Why has violence flared in eastern Ukraine?

There is pressure on President Obama to adopt a tougher stance, with some officials in Washington, as well as senior Republicans such as Senator John McCain, arguing that some form of military support is necessary, the BBC's Rajini Vaidyanathan reports from the US capital.

Angela Merkel is said to be holding out hope for a diplomatic solution.
Her trip to Washington comes days before she attends a summit in Minsk with the leaders of France, Russia and Ukraine.

She and French President Francois Hollande have been leading efforts to revive the Minsk peace plan which collapsed amid fighting over the winter.

The detailed proposals have not been released but the plan is thought to include a demilitarised zone of 50-70km (31-44 miles) around the current front line.

What was the Minsk agreement?

A ceasefire signed by Ukraine and pro-Russian separatist rebels on 5 September 2014 in Minsk, Belarus

They agreed to 12 points including pulling back heavy guns by at least 15km (9 miles), releasing prisoners, allowing access to international observers, and setting up a buffer zone on the Russia-Ukraine border. Foreign mercenaries were to withdraw and Donetsk and Luhansk would get wider self-rule

But military clashes never entirely stopped. Each side accused the other of violating the deal and violence later flared the length of the ceasefire line

Rebels also held their own local elections in November 2014, in defiance of Kiev. The government responded by saying it would scrap partial autonomy for Donetsk and Luhansk