State Dept: Ukraine-Russia 'differences,' including territory, to be discussed after truce

"Differences" between Ukraine and Russia, including territorial issues, will be addressed only after a full ceasefire is established, US State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said during a briefing.

Earlier, US President Donald Trump stated that territorial issues (demarcation lines) were being discussed. Before that, special envoy Steve Witkoff referred to occupied Ukrainian territories as "Russian-speaking" and attempted to justify their seizure with Russia's illegal "referendums."

A journalist asked Bruce whether the US government considers Russia to have legitimate claims to Ukrainian territories.

"What I can tell you first of all, of course, is I'm not going to speculate, and once again there's – because of the approach of this administration, there are a lot of diplomatic talks going on. There's a lot of summits happening. There's a lot of conversations happening, the supermajority of which I cannot comment on to you about those kinds of discussions or the commentary from which they may or may not have gleaned from," she replied.

Bruce said that the US government is working toward one goal—securing peace—which remains the focus of negotiations in Saudi Arabia.

She stated that only after achieving a full ceasefire will it be possible to "discuss the differences [between the warring parties] in what proceeds after that when it comes to an enduring peace." According to Bruce, both Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio have voiced this position.