President of the United States of America Donald Trump stated that he would not agree to a meeting with Russian dictator Vladimir Putin until there was an understanding regarding the conclusion of an agreement on a peaceful settlement of the war in Ukraine.

The American leader made this statement during a conversation with journalists, the audio recording of which was broadcast on the White House website. He also made a statement about China's reduction in purchases of Russian oil:

"China is significantly reducing purchases of Russian oil. India is completely stopping purchases," he said.

USA and Russia: what you should know

The United States recently imposed major sanctions against Russia for the first time since Trump's inauguration. They affected oil giants - Rosneft and Lukoil – and their subsidiaries.

Reuters wrote that the States could introduce and additional restrictions But first, Washington wants Europe to increase its pressure on Russia. In particular, American officials have told European counterparts that they support using frozen Russian assets to purchase American weapons to help Ukraine.

According to the journalists' interlocutor, some of the additional sanctions prepared in the United States are aimed at Russia's banking sector and the infrastructure used to supply oil to the market.