Plans for Putin-Trump Summit Postponed Shortly Following Budapest Talks Proposed
Currently exist "no plans" for American leader President Trump to confer with Russian President Putin "anytime soon", a White House official has stated.
Recently Trump stated he and the Kremlin leader would hold talks in Hungary's capital soon to address the war in Ukraine.
A preparatory meeting between US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and his opposite number Foreign Minister Lavrov was due to be held this week - but the administration stated the two had had a "productive" call and that a meeting was not "needed".
The White House declined to provide additional specifics on why the talks had been put on hold.
Background Context
The US president had discussed a Hungarian meeting via telephone with the Russian leader, a day before hosting Ukraine's President Zelensky in the Oval Office.
Various sources claimed his meeting with the Ukrainian leader had been a "contentious discussion", with those familiar suggesting Trump had pushed him to cede significant territories of Ukraine's east as part of a settlement with Russia.
However, on this week Trump embraced a ceasefire proposal endorsed by Kyiv and EU officials to freeze the conflict on the existing battle lines.
"Leave it as is in its current state," he said.
Russia has consistently objected against pausing the present battle positions.
The Russian government was exclusively seeking "permanent resolution", Lavrov said on this week, suggesting that freezing the front line would only amount to a brief pause.
Negotiating Stances
The "root causes" of the conflict required resolution, Lavrov stated, using Kremlin shorthand for a range of comprehensive conditions that encompass the acknowledgment of complete Moscow control over the eastern region as well as the demilitarisation of the country – a unacceptable proposition for Kyiv and its EU supporters.
The Ukrainian president commented talks regarding the battle positions were the "start of negotiations" but that Moscow was "doing everything" to avoid diplomacy.
He additionally stated the exclusive issue that could make Moscow "become engaged" was that of the delivery of long-range weapons to the Ukrainian military.
Weapons Discussions
The Russian president's unplanned conversation with Trump last Thursday preceded speculation that the US was preparing to send distance-capable weapons to Ukrainian forces that could theoretically target inside Russia.
The Ukrainian leader said it was the Tomahawks issue that had compelled Moscow to enter into dialogue. The talk about the weapons systems had emerged as a "significant input" in international relations", he added.