Plans for Putin-Trump Meeting Shelved Days Following Budapest Talks Proposed
Currently exist "no arrangements" for US President President Trump to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin "in the near term", a administration representative has stated.
Last Thursday the US president said he and the Russian president would conduct negotiations in Budapest soon to address the ongoing hostilities.
A preparatory meeting between America's top diplomat Marco Rubio and his Russian counterpart Foreign Minister Lavrov was scheduled to occur this week - but the administration said the two had had a "productive" discussion and that a meeting was no longer "needed".
The White House declined to provide additional specifics on why the talks had been put on hold.
Previous Developments
Trump had discussed a Budapest summit via telephone with Putin, a day before meeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in the White House.
Various sources claimed his talks with Zelensky had been a "shouting match", with insiders claiming Trump had pressured him to give up large areas of eastern Ukraine as part of a settlement with Moscow.
However, on this week Trump supported a ceasefire proposal endorsed by Kyiv and European leaders to halt the conflict on the existing battle lines.
"Freeze the lines in its current state," he said.
Moscow has repeatedly pushed back against freezing the present battle positions.
The Russian government was exclusively seeking "permanent resolution", Russia's foreign minister stated on Tuesday, implying that freezing the front line would merely represent a short-term truce.
Negotiating Stances
The "fundamental issues" of the war needed to be addressed, the Russian diplomat stated, using Russian diplomatic language for a series of comprehensive conditions that encompass the acceptance of total Russian authority over the Donbas as well as the demilitarisation of the country – a unacceptable proposition for Ukraine and its European partners.
The Ukrainian president commented conversations concerning the battle positions were the "beginning of diplomacy" but that Moscow was "employing all tactics" to evade negotiations.
He additionally stated the only topic that could make Moscow "pay attention" was that of the supply of long-range weapons to Ukraine.
Weapons Discussions
The Russian president's unscheduled call with Trump last Thursday occurred before rumors that the United States was considering delivering distance-capable weapons to Ukraine that could theoretically target deep into Russia.
Zelensky said it was the missile discussion that had forced Russia to engage in discussion. The discussion regarding the missiles had proven to be a "valuable contribution" in international relations", he remarked.