Arrangements for Trump-Putin Summit Postponed Shortly Following Budapest Talks Suggested
Currently exist "no plans" for US President President Trump to meet Russia's Putin "in the immediate future", a administration representative has stated.
Recently the US president said he and the Kremlin leader would meet in Hungary's capital in the coming fortnight to examine the ongoing hostilities.
A preparatory meeting between America's top diplomat Secretary Rubio and his Russian counterpart Foreign Minister Lavrov was scheduled to occur this week - but the administration clarified the two had had a "constructive" discussion and that a face-to-face session was not "needed".
The White House withheld further information on the reason the negotiations had been put on hold.
Earlier Events
The US president had raised the possibility of a Hungarian meeting over the phone with the Russian leader, a day before meeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in the Oval Office.
Certain accounts indicated his talks with the Ukrainian leader had been a "heated exchange", with sources claiming Trump had pushed him to relinquish large areas of Ukraine's east as part of a settlement with Moscow.
However, on this week Trump supported a truce plan supported by Kyiv and European leaders to halt the hostilities on the present positions.
"Leave it as is in its current state," he said.
Moscow has repeatedly pushed back against pausing the present battle positions.
Moscow was exclusively seeking "long-term, sustainable peace", Lavrov commented on this week, suggesting that freezing the front line would simply constitute a temporary ceasefire.
Negotiating Stances
The "underlying reasons" of the conflict required resolution, the Russian diplomat stated, using Kremlin shorthand for a set of extensive requirements that encompass the acknowledgment of full Russian sovereignty over the eastern region as well as the demilitarisation of the country – a impossible condition for Kyiv and its Western allies.
Zelensky said conversations concerning the current lines were the "commencement of dialogue" but that Russia was "doing everything" to avoid diplomacy.
He also said the only topic that could cause Russia to "become engaged" was that of the delivery of long-range weapons to Ukraine.
Strategic Factors
Putin's spontaneous discussion with Trump last Thursday occurred before reports that the US was planning to provide long-range Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine that could theoretically target deep into Russia.
The Ukrainian leader stated it was the Tomahawks issue that had compelled Moscow to engage in discussion. The conversation concerning the missiles had emerged as a "significant input" in international relations", he remarked.