Putin says peace in east Ukraine is possible, but both sides not fully upholding a peace deal

In this photo taken on Saturday, Nov. 15, 2014, Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks to the media before departing from the G-20 summit in Brisbane, Australia. Russian President Vladimir Putin made an early exit on Sunday from a two-day summit of world leaders where he was roundly criticized over Russia's escalating aggression in Ukraine, but brushed off suggestions that he had felt pressured. (AP Photo/RIA-Novosti, Mikhail Klimentyev, Presidential Press Service) (The Associated Press)

German Chancellor Angela Merkel, center, waves to well-wishers as she arrives at the ANZAC Memorial in Hyde Park in Sydney on Monday, Nov. 17, 2014. Chancellor Merkel is in Sydney following her attendance at the G20 summit in Brisbane.(AP Photo/Paul Miller, Pool) (The Associated Press)

German Chancellor Angela Merkel smiles at a question as she takes part in a Q&A session after she addressed the Lowy Institute in Sydney, Australia, Monday, Nov. 17, 2014. Merkel is in Australia to attend the G-20 summit in Brisbane and an official visit to Sydney and Canberra. (AP Photo/Rob Griffith) (The Associated Press)

Russia's president says he believes peace in Ukraine is possible but that neither side is fully holding up a peace deal struck in September.

In an interview with German television broadcast late Sunday, Putin said that he was convinced that it was possible to end the deadlock in east Ukraine, where pro-Russian rebels have been battling Kiev's troops in a conflict that has claimed at least 3,500 lives since March.

Putin also said that neither the rebels nor Ukrainian troops had fully withdrawn from key locations in the region to create a buffer zone, a key part of a truce deal agreed to in September.