Arrangements for Putin-Trump Talks Postponed Days After Hungarian Capital Talks Suggested
Currently exist "no preparations" for American leader Donald Trump to confer with Russia's Vladimir Putin "anytime soon", a administration representative has declared.
Recently Trump indicated he and the Kremlin leader would hold talks in Budapest in the coming fortnight to examine the war in Ukraine.
A initial discussion between US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and his Russian counterpart Foreign Minister Lavrov was scheduled to occur recently - but the White House said the two had had a "positive" discussion and that a meeting was not "needed".
The White House did not share further information on why the talks had been delayed.
Earlier Events
The US president had discussed a Budapest summit over the phone with the Russian leader, a just prior to meeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in the White House.
Some reports suggested his meeting with the Ukrainian leader had been a "heated exchange", with sources claiming Trump had pushed him to cede significant territories of eastern Ukraine as part of a deal with Russia.
However, on this week Trump embraced a ceasefire proposal supported by Ukraine and European leaders to pause the hostilities on the present positions.
"Leave it as is where it stands," he said.
Russia has consistently objected against halting the current line of contact.
Moscow was exclusively seeking "long-term, sustainable peace", Russia's foreign minister said on Tuesday, indicating that halting hostilities would merely represent a temporary ceasefire.
Negotiating Stances
The "root causes" of the hostilities required resolution, Lavrov stated, using Kremlin shorthand for a set of maximalist demands that encompass the acceptance of full Russian sovereignty over the Donbas as well as the demilitarisation of Ukraine – a unacceptable proposition for Kyiv and its EU supporters.
The Ukrainian president said conversations concerning the front line were the "start of negotiations" but that Moscow was "employing all tactics" to prevent dialogue.
He further commented the sole subject that could cause Russia to "become engaged" was that of the provision of extended-range arms to the Ukrainian military.
Military Considerations
The Russian president's spontaneous discussion with Trump last Thursday occurred before speculation that the US was planning to provide long-range Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine that could potentially strike Russian territory.
Zelensky asserted it was the Tomahawks issue that had compelled Moscow to engage in discussion. The talk about the weapons systems had proven to be a "valuable contribution" in international relations", he added.