Arrangements for Trump-Putin Meeting Delayed Shortly After Budapest Talks Proposed
Currently exist "no preparations" for American leader President Trump to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin "in the near term", a administration representative has announced.
Recently the US president indicated he and the Kremlin leader would conduct negotiations in Hungary's capital within two weeks to discuss the ongoing hostilities.
A initial discussion between US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and his opposite number Sergei Lavrov was planned for recently - but the White House said the two had had a "constructive" conversation and that a face-to-face session was not "required".
The administration withheld further information on why the talks had been postponed.
Background Context
Trump had raised the possibility of a Budapest summit during a call with Putin, a just prior to hosting Ukrainian President President Zelensky in the Oval Office.
Various sources indicated his meeting with the Ukrainian leader had been a "shouting match", with those familiar claiming Trump had pushed him to give up extensive regions of eastern Ukraine as part of a agreement with Moscow.
Nevertheless, on this week the American president embraced a truce plan backed by Ukraine and European leaders to halt the conflict on the present positions.
"Freeze the lines the way it is," he said.
Russia has frequently resisted against freezing the present battle positions.
The Russian government was exclusively seeking "enduring stability", Lavrov stated on Tuesday, suggesting that halting hostilities would only amount to a short-term truce.
Diplomatic Positions
The "fundamental issues" of the conflict needed to be addressed, the Russian diplomat emphasized, using Kremlin shorthand for a range of comprehensive conditions that include the acceptance of full Russian sovereignty over the eastern region as well as the demilitarisation of the country – a impossible condition for Kyiv and its European partners.
Zelensky commented discussions about the battle positions were the "commencement of dialogue" but that Russia was "taking all measures" to evade negotiations.
He also said the sole subject that could cause Russia to "take notice" was that of the supply of long-range weapons to the Ukrainian military.
Military Considerations
The Russian president's spontaneous discussion with the US leader recently occurred before rumors that the United States was considering delivering long-range Tomahawk missiles to Ukrainian forces that could theoretically target Russian territory.
Zelensky asserted it was the missile discussion that had forced Russia to enter into dialogue. The talk about the weapons systems had proven to be a "valuable contribution" in diplomacy", he commented.