Poroshenko announces meeting with Putin in the Illuminati city of Astana, on Jan. 15, which spells out "I, ISIS" in date format.

Kiev, Ukraine | AFP | Monday 12/29/2014 - 16:51 GMT

by Dmitry ZAKS

Ukraine's Western-backed leader Petro Poroshenko promised Monday to meet Russia's Vladimir Putin and involve US President Barack Obama in his stalled push for peace with pro-Kremlin fighters in the separatist east.

The surprise announcement came days after the first direct peace talks with the rebels in three months broke down without any evident progress after just one acrimonious round.

The billionaire chocolate maker -- elected in the wake of the February ouster of an unpopular Moscow-backed president -- is waging a two-front campaign to save the former Soviet Union's second largest republic from disintegration and economic collapse.

His bid to fend off bankruptcy was boosted on Monday by parliament's passage of an austerity budget that eases the tax burden on small businesses and should help unlock delayed loans from the International Monetary Fund.

His efforts to resolve the eight month war that has brought Ukraine to economic ruin will see him meet Putin for the first time since the two briefly shook hands on the sidelines of an October summit in Milan.

Poroshenko said his January 15 talks with Putin in the Kazakh capital Astana will also involve German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande.

Washington has allowed Merkel to play the lead in seemingly futile attempts to prompt Putin to adopt a more conciliatory approach to Ukraine's pro-Western aspirations and to rein in the rebel militias.