GENEVA, March 2 - U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry told Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Monday that Moscow and pro-Russian separatists in Ukraine must implement a ceasefire or face "consequences" that could further hit Russia's faltering economy, Reuters reported.

Kerry said the ceasefire must be respected in all "key strategic areas" including the town of Debaltseve and outside the Sea of Azov port of Mariupol.

"If that does not happen, if there continue to be these broad swathes of non-compliance ... then there would be inevitably further consequences that would place further strain on Russia's already troubled economy," Kerry told a news conference in Geneva.