U.S. State Department rules out deals with Russia, sanctions relief until ceasefire in Ukraine

U.S. State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce stated this, Ukrinform reports.

“There will be no negotiations, no decisions, no agreements until this slaughter stops,” she said in response to a question about the latest round of talks with Russia and the possibility that the United States might ease sanctions against the Russian Federation.

Bruce also emphasized that after Palm Sunday, when a missile strike hit Sumy, a dynamic has emerged that raises further questions about who is truly committed to peace and a ceasefire. The U.S. State Department spokesperson described the war in Ukraine as a “meat grinder” where nothing has changed.

“And yet we continue to work, obviously, toward a ceasefire,” the State Department representative noted.

• On April 14, American leader Donald Trump accused Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and former U.S. President Joe Biden of “allowing the war to begin.”
• On the morning of Sunday, April 13, Russian troops launched a missile strike on the city of Sumy, killing and injuring dozens of civilians, including children.
• U.S. President Donald Trump called Russia's April 13 strike on Sumy horrific and added that the Russians had made a mistake. Later, he clarified his statement, saying the mistake was allowing the full-scale war to begin.
• Trump believes that an economic partnership between Moscow and the United States could serve as an incentive for Russia to end its war against Ukraine.