Leaked tapes underline EU-U.S. split over Ukraine sanctions

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The leaked recording of senior U.S. officials dismissing the European Union's role in Ukraine may be deeply embarrassing but it has exposed a very real split between Brussels and Washington over how to handle Kiev.

Both the United States and the EU have launched diplomatic campaigns to end the violence gripping Ukraine since President Viktor Yanukovich rejected an EU trade deal last November and committed himself to Russia instead.