Plans for Putin-Trump Talks Shelved Shortly Following Hungarian Capital Negotiations Suggested

Trump and Putin
Putin and Trump last met in late summer in Alaska and the American leader had said further discussions would take place in Budapest

There are "no plans" for US President Donald Trump to confer with Russian President Putin "in the immediate future", a administration representative has stated.

Recently Trump stated he and the Russian president would hold talks in Hungary's capital within two weeks to discuss the Ukraine conflict.

A initial discussion between America's top diplomat Secretary Rubio and his Russian counterpart Foreign Minister Lavrov was planned for this week - but the White House clarified the two had had a "positive" conversation and that a face-to-face session was no longer "necessary".

The White House did not share any more details on the reason the negotiations had been put on hold.

Previous Developments

The US president had raised the possibility of a Budapest summit via telephone with Putin, a day before hosting Ukrainian President President Zelensky in the Oval Office.

Various sources suggested his talks with Zelensky had been a "shouting match", with insiders suggesting Trump had pressured him to cede extensive regions of eastern Ukraine as part of a agreement with Moscow.

However, on Monday Trump supported a ceasefire proposal backed by Ukraine and EU officials to freeze the conflict on the existing battle lines.

"Freeze the lines where it stands," he remarked.

Russia has consistently objected against halting the current line of contact.

The Russian government was only interested in "permanent resolution", Lavrov commented on this week, indicating that freezing the front line would merely represent a brief pause.

Diplomatic Positions

The "underlying reasons" of the conflict required resolution, the Russian diplomat said, using Moscow's terminology for a set of extensive requirements that encompass the acknowledgment of full Russian sovereignty over the eastern region as well as the military reduction of the country – a non-starter for Kyiv and its EU supporters.

Zelensky said talks regarding the current lines were the "beginning of diplomacy" but that Moscow was "employing all tactics" to evade negotiations.

He further commented the only topic that could cause Russia to "take notice" was that of the delivery of distance-capable munitions to the Ukrainian military.

Weapons Discussions

Putin's unscheduled call with the US leader last Thursday occurred before speculation that the US was planning to provide extended-range cruise missiles to Ukrainian forces that could theoretically target inside Russia.

Zelensky said it was the Tomahawks issue that had compelled Moscow to participate in talks. The conversation concerning the weapons systems had turned out to be a "valuable contribution" in negotiations", he commented.

Alvin Washington
Alvin Washington

A passionate mobile gamer and strategy expert, sharing insights to help players master their favorite games.