State Department: Ukraine, Russia 'a breath away' from ceasefire

This was reported on Thursday by the official representative of the US State Department, Tammy Bruce, as reported by Ukrinform with reference to The Hill.

“We are one step away from a complete ceasefire, and then we can start to talk about not just a peace for a week or six months, but a sustainable peace that Ukraine and Russia and the world can rely on. America is actively promoting that, and we continue to work on that every day,” Bruce told NewsNation Now host Nisha Burleigh.

“We've never been closer to peace between the two sides,” Bruce added.

Read also: Starmer says Putin will violate ceasefire if Ukraine is not protected

Delegations from the United States and Ukraine met in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on March 11. Ukraine expressed its readiness to accept the U.S. proposal for an immediate 30-day temporary ceasefire, provided that Russia also complies with it.

On March 13, U.S. Special Representative Steve Witkoff visited Moscow, where he met with Russian President Vladimir Putin. The Kremlin noted that Putin conveyed “additional information and signals” to U.S. President Donald Trump through Witkoff.

On Tuesday, March 18, Trump had a telephone conversation with Putin. According to the White House, Moscow agreed to stop attacks on Ukrainian energy and infrastructure facilities.

On Wednesday, March 19, Trump spoke with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. The US administration stressed that Trump is committed to ensuring sustainable peace in Ukraine.