Plans for Trump-Putin Meeting Delayed Days Following Budapest Talks Suggested
Currently exist "no plans" for US President Donald Trump to confer with Russian President Vladimir Putin "anytime soon", a White House official has announced.
This past week Trump stated he and the Russian president would meet in Budapest within two weeks to examine the Ukraine conflict.
A preparatory meeting between America's top diplomat Secretary Rubio and his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov was scheduled to occur recently - but the administration said the two had had a "constructive" call and that a meeting was not "needed".
The administration declined to provide further information on why the talks had been put on hold.
Earlier Events
Trump had discussed a Hungarian meeting over the phone with the Russian leader, a day before meeting Ukrainian President President Zelensky in the Oval Office.
Some reports suggested his talks with Zelensky had been a "heated exchange", with those familiar suggesting the president had pushed him to relinquish large areas of eastern Ukraine as part of a deal with Moscow.
However, on this week the American president embraced a ceasefire proposal backed by Ukraine and EU officials to freeze the conflict on the current front line.
"Leave it as is in its current state," he stated.
Moscow has consistently objected against halting the current line of contact.
Moscow was exclusively seeking "permanent resolution", Lavrov commented on Tuesday, implying that halting hostilities would merely represent a temporary ceasefire.
Diplomatic Positions
The "fundamental issues" of the conflict required resolution, Lavrov said, using Moscow's terminology for a set of maximalist demands that encompass the acknowledgment of total Russian authority over the Donbas as well as the disarmament of Ukraine – a impossible condition for Ukraine and its European partners.
Zelensky stated discussions about the current lines were the "start of negotiations" but that Russia was "employing all tactics" to evade negotiations.
He additionally stated the exclusive issue that could make Moscow "pay attention" was that of the provision of distance-capable munitions to the Ukrainian military.
Weapons Discussions
The Russian president's unplanned conversation with the US leader last Thursday preceded reports that the US was considering delivering extended-range cruise missiles to Ukraine that could theoretically target deep into Russia.
Zelensky said it was the weapons consideration that had pressured the Kremlin to enter into dialogue. The discussion regarding the missiles had proven to be a "strong investment" in negotiations", he added.