Arrangements for Trump-Putin Meeting Postponed Days Following Budapest Talks Proposed
Currently exist "no plans" for American leader Donald Trump to confer with Russia's Putin "anytime soon", a administration representative has announced.
Last Thursday Trump stated he and the Russian president would meet in Budapest in the coming fortnight to discuss the ongoing hostilities.
A preparatory meeting between America's top diplomat Marco Rubio and his Russian counterpart Foreign Minister Lavrov was planned for this week - but the White House clarified the two had had a "constructive" call and that a face-to-face session was no longer "necessary".
The administration did not share further information on why the talks had been delayed.
Earlier Events
The US president had discussed a Budapest summit during a call with Putin, a day before meeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in the Oval Office.
Certain accounts suggested his meeting with Zelensky had been a "shouting match", with sources claiming Trump had pressured him to give up extensive regions of Ukraine's east as part of a agreement with Russia.
However, on this week Trump embraced a truce plan supported by Kyiv and European leaders to halt the hostilities on the existing battle lines.
"Leave it as is in its current state," he remarked.
Russia has consistently objected against freezing the existing front lines.
The Russian government was exclusively seeking "permanent resolution", Lavrov commented on Tuesday, indicating that pausing conflict would only amount to a brief pause.
Negotiating Stances
The "root causes" of the hostilities demanded attention, the Russian diplomat said, using Kremlin shorthand for a series of comprehensive conditions that encompass the acknowledgment of total Russian authority over the Donbas as well as the demilitarisation of Ukraine – a impossible condition for Ukraine and its Western allies.
The Ukrainian president commented talks regarding the front line were the "beginning of diplomacy" but that Russia was "employing all tactics" to evade negotiations.
He also said the sole subject that could make Moscow "take notice" was that of the supply of distance-capable munitions to the Ukrainian military.
Weapons Discussions
Putin's spontaneous discussion with Trump recently preceded speculation that the US was considering delivering long-range Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine that could possibly hit Russian territory.
The Ukrainian leader stated it was the Tomahawks issue that had forced Russia to enter into dialogue. The conversation concerning the missiles had emerged as a "strong investment" in negotiations", he added.