"I think the Russian president has made it clear that there are no circumstances under which Russia can consider a negotiated peace settlement with the existing Ukrainian regime, that it's a terrorist regime. He specifically said: who negotiates with terrorists?" Ritter said.
"He's put the onus on the United States, on President Trump to make a decision as to how they want to proceed - to be viewed by Russia as supporters of terrorism, or to be viewed Russia as a partner for peace," the observer emphasized.