Pro-Russia separatists withdraw from the village of Petrovske on Oct. 3.
(ALEKSEY FILIPPOV/AFP/Getty Images)
Talks between the United States and Russia over the Ukrainian conflict seem more and more unlikely to make any meaningful headway as Barack Obama's last presidential term comes to a close. Cease-fire violations are a daily occurrence along the line of contact in eastern Ukraine -- Kiev reported 30 made by pro-Russia separatists on Oct. 7 alone -- and plans to withdraw troops and weaponry in certain locations have had mixed results. After an Oct. 5 meeting between U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Victoria Nuland and Russian officials in Moscow, Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov said he had "no expectations of a breakthrough."...
