Top diplomat says Ukraine sticking point in US-Russia ties

VIENNA (AP) — U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said Thursday that Ukraine was the sole sticking point keeping the United States and Russia from forging a closer relationship and that all other disputes were secondary.

"The issue that stands in the way is Ukraine," Tillerson said.

President Donald Trump campaigned on the need to improve ties with Russia, Tillerson said, adding that "normalizing" relations between the nuclear powers was something the U.S. still "badly would like to do." He said that from the start, the Trump administration had told Moscow that addressing Ukraine was essential to warmer ties.

"We can have differences in other arenas, in Syria, we can have differences in other areas," Tillerson said.