The United States will not impose additional sanctions on Russia for now, and it still wants room to negotiate a peace deal, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told Politico, the latter reports.

“If we [i.e. the US] did what everybody here wants us to do, and that is come in and crush them [i.e. Russia] with more sanctions, we probably lose our ability to talk to them about the ceasefire, and then who’s talking to them?,” Rubio told Politico on the sidelines of the NATO summit.

US President Donald Trump will “know the right time and place” for new economic measures and the administration is working with Congress to make sure they allow Trump the appropriate flexibility, added the Secretary of State.

"If there’s an opportunity for us to make a difference and get them [i.e. Russia] to the [negotiating] table, we’re going to take it," Rubio said.