Plans for Putin-Trump Talks Delayed Shortly Following Hungarian Capital Talks Proposed

Trump and Putin
Trump and Putin previously convened in late summer in Alaska and the US president had indicated additional talks would occur in Budapest

Currently exist "no plans" for American leader President Trump to confer with Russia's Vladimir Putin "in the immediate future", a White House official has announced.

Last Thursday Trump indicated he and the Russian president would meet in Hungary's capital in the coming fortnight to examine the ongoing hostilities.

A preparatory meeting between America's top diplomat Marco Rubio and his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov was due to be held this week - but the administration said the two had had a "productive" call and that a face-to-face session was no longer "required".

The White House declined to provide additional specifics on the reason the negotiations had been postponed.

Earlier Events

Trump had raised the possibility of a Hungarian meeting during a call with Putin, a just prior to hosting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in the White House.

Certain accounts claimed his talks with Zelensky had been a "heated exchange", with those familiar indicating the president had urged him to relinquish significant territories of eastern Ukraine as part of a deal with Russia.

Yet, on Monday Trump endorsed a truce plan supported by Kyiv and EU officials to pause the war on the existing battle lines.

"Leave it as is the way it is," he stated.

Moscow has repeatedly pushed back against pausing the present battle positions.

The Russian government was only interested in "permanent resolution", Lavrov said on Tuesday, indicating that halting hostilities would only amount to a short-term truce.

Diplomatic Positions

The "fundamental issues" of the conflict demanded attention, the Russian diplomat stated, using Moscow's terminology for a set of comprehensive conditions that encompass the recognition of complete Moscow control over the Donbas as well as the disarmament of Ukraine – a impossible condition for Kyiv and its European partners.

The Ukrainian president stated discussions about the front line were the "start of negotiations" but that Moscow was "taking all measures" to evade negotiations.

He also said the sole subject that could make Moscow "pay attention" was that of the provision of distance-capable munitions to the Ukrainian military.

Strategic Factors

The Russian president's unscheduled call with the US leader recently preceded reports that the United States was considering delivering extended-range cruise missiles to Ukrainian forces that could possibly hit inside Russia.

The Ukrainian leader said it was the weapons consideration that had pressured the Kremlin to engage in discussion. The talk about the weapons systems had emerged as a "significant input" in negotiations", he added.

Rose Jackson
Rose Jackson

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