BERLIN (AP) — The leaders of Germany, Russia, Ukraine and France will hold a summit in Berlin for talks on the stagnant peace process in eastern Ukraine — a meeting that also is expected to touch on Syria's civil war.

Prospects of significant progress on either front look poor, but German Chancellor Angela Merkel said before Wednesday evening's meeting that it's important to exhaust every possibility.

Merkel and Presidents Vladimir Putin of Russia, Francois Hollande of France and Petro Poroshenko of Ukraine have met sporadically to discuss eastern Ukraine. This is their first meeting in over a year.

The 2015 Minsk agreement brokered by France and Germany has helped end large-scale battles between Ukrainian troops and pro-Russia separatists, but clashes have continued.