Plans for Trump-Putin Meeting Shelved Shortly Following Budapest Negotiations Proposed
There are "no preparations" for American leader President Trump to meet Russia's Putin "anytime soon", a administration representative has stated.
This past week Trump said he and the Russian president would conduct negotiations in Hungary's capital in the coming fortnight to address the war in Ukraine.
A preparatory meeting between US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov was planned for recently - but the White House said the two had had a "constructive" call and that a meeting was no longer "required".
The administration declined to provide any more details on the reason the negotiations had been postponed.
Background Context
Trump had discussed a Budapest summit during a call with the Russian leader, a just prior to meeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in the White House.
Certain accounts suggested his meeting with Zelensky had been a "contentious discussion", with insiders claiming Trump had pressured him to relinquish extensive regions of eastern Ukraine as part of a agreement with Russia.
However, on Monday the American president embraced a peace initiative supported by Ukraine and EU officials to freeze the hostilities on the present positions.
"Let it be cut where it stands," he stated.
Russia has repeatedly pushed back against freezing the current line of contact.
The Russian government was solely focused on "permanent resolution", Russia's foreign minister said on this week, suggesting that halting hostilities would only amount to a temporary ceasefire.
Diplomatic Positions
The "fundamental issues" of the conflict required resolution, Lavrov stated, using Moscow's terminology for a range of extensive requirements that encompass the acknowledgment of full Russian sovereignty over the Donbas as well as the military reduction of Ukraine – a non-starter for Kyiv and its Western allies.
The Ukrainian president said discussions about the current lines were the "start of negotiations" but that Russia was "doing everything" to prevent dialogue.
He further commented the only topic that could cause Russia to "become engaged" was that of the supply of long-range weapons to Ukraine.
Weapons Discussions
The Russian president's spontaneous discussion with Trump last Thursday came ahead of speculation that the United States was planning to provide long-range Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine that could possibly hit deep into Russia.
The Ukrainian leader stated it was the Tomahawks issue that had compelled Moscow to participate in talks. The discussion regarding the missiles had turned out to be a "strong investment" in international relations", he added.