Preparations for Trump-Putin Summit Delayed Days After Budapest Talks Proposed
Currently exist "no plans" for American leader Donald Trump to meet Russia's Vladimir Putin "in the near term", a administration representative has announced.
Recently the US president indicated he and the Kremlin leader would hold talks in Hungary's capital soon to address the ongoing hostilities.
A planning session between America's top diplomat Marco Rubio and his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov was due to be held recently - but the White House clarified the two had had a "positive" conversation and that a meeting was not "required".
The White House withheld any more details on the reason the negotiations had been delayed.
Earlier Events
Trump had discussed a Hungarian meeting via telephone with the Russian leader, a just prior to meeting Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelensky in the Oval Office.
Certain accounts claimed his talks with Zelensky had been a "shouting match", with those familiar suggesting the president had urged him to relinquish extensive regions of eastern Ukraine as part of a settlement with Moscow.
Nevertheless, on Monday Trump endorsed a truce plan backed by Kyiv and EU officials to freeze the war on the present positions.
"Leave it as is where it stands," he said.
Russia has frequently resisted against pausing the current line of contact.
Moscow was only interested in "permanent resolution", Russia's foreign minister commented on Tuesday, indicating that pausing conflict would simply constitute a short-term truce.
Negotiating Stances
The "fundamental issues" of the conflict demanded attention, the Russian diplomat stated, using Russian diplomatic language for a range of maximalist demands that involve the recognition of full Russian sovereignty over the eastern region as well as the demilitarisation of the country – a impossible condition for Ukraine and its EU supporters.
Zelensky stated discussions about the current lines were the "beginning of diplomacy" but that Russia was "employing all tactics" to avoid diplomacy.
He additionally stated the sole subject that could make Moscow "pay attention" was that of the supply of distance-capable munitions to Ukraine.
Military Considerations
Putin's unplanned conversation with Trump recently preceded reports that the US was preparing to send extended-range cruise missiles to Ukraine that could theoretically target deep into Russia.
The Ukrainian leader stated it was the weapons consideration that had forced Russia to engage in discussion. The discussion regarding the missiles had turned out to be a "valuable contribution" in international relations", he remarked.