Plans for Putin-Trump Talks Postponed Days Following Budapest Negotiations Proposed

Trump and Putin
Trump and Putin last met in August in Alaska and the American leader had said further discussions would occur in the Hungarian capital

Currently exist "no arrangements" for American leader President Trump to confer with Russian President Vladimir Putin "anytime soon", a administration representative has announced.

Recently Trump said he and the Russian president would conduct negotiations in Budapest in the coming fortnight to discuss the Ukraine conflict.

A initial discussion between US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and his opposite number Foreign Minister Lavrov was scheduled to occur recently - but the administration said the two had had a "productive" discussion and that a meeting was no longer "needed".

The White House withheld any more details on why the talks had been delayed.

Earlier Events

Trump had raised the possibility of a Budapest summit via telephone with Putin, a day before meeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in the White House.

Some reports suggested his talks with the Ukrainian leader had been a "contentious discussion", with sources indicating Trump had urged him to relinquish extensive regions of Ukraine's east as part of a settlement with Moscow.

Nevertheless, on this week the American president embraced a truce plan endorsed by Kyiv and EU officials to halt the war on the present positions.

"Freeze the lines the way it is," he remarked.

Moscow has repeatedly pushed back against pausing the existing front lines.

Moscow was solely focused on "enduring stability", Russia's foreign minister said on Tuesday, implying that freezing the front line would simply constitute a brief pause.

Negotiating Stances

The "underlying reasons" of the conflict demanded attention, Lavrov emphasized, using Moscow's terminology for a set of extensive requirements that include the recognition of full Russian sovereignty over the Donbas as well as the disarmament of the country – a non-starter for Ukraine and its European partners.

Zelensky said discussions about the current lines were the "commencement of dialogue" but that Moscow was "employing all tactics" to prevent dialogue.

He further commented the sole subject that could cause Russia to "take notice" was that of the provision of extended-range arms to the Ukrainian military.

Strategic Factors

Putin's spontaneous discussion with Trump recently came ahead of rumors that the US was planning to provide extended-range cruise missiles to Ukraine that could possibly hit Russian territory.

The Ukrainian leader stated it was the Tomahawks issue that had forced Russia to participate in talks. The conversation concerning the missiles had turned out to be a "strong investment" in negotiations", he added.

John Johnson
John Johnson

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