Arrangements for Putin-Trump Summit Postponed Shortly Following Hungarian Capital Negotiations Announced
There are "no preparations" for American leader President Trump to confer with Russian President Vladimir Putin "in the immediate future", a administration representative has declared.
This past week the US president said he and the Kremlin leader would hold talks in Hungary's capital in the coming fortnight to examine the ongoing hostilities.
A preparatory meeting between America's top diplomat Marco Rubio and his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov was due to be held this week - but the administration clarified the two had had a "productive" discussion and that a meeting was not "required".
The White House declined to provide further information on why the talks had been postponed.
Previous Developments
The US president had raised the possibility of a Hungarian meeting via telephone with Putin, a just prior to meeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in the Oval Office.
Some reports indicated his talks with the Ukrainian leader had been a "heated exchange", with sources claiming the president had pushed him to cede large areas of Ukraine's east as part of a settlement with Russia.
Yet, on Monday Trump endorsed a peace initiative backed by Ukraine and EU officials to halt the war on the present positions.
"Leave it as is where it stands," he remarked.
Moscow has repeatedly pushed back against halting the current line of contact.
The Russian government was exclusively seeking "permanent resolution", Lavrov commented on this week, indicating that freezing the front line would only amount to a short-term truce.
Diplomatic Positions
The "fundamental issues" of the conflict demanded attention, the Russian diplomat stated, using Moscow's terminology for a series of comprehensive conditions that include the acceptance of total Russian authority over the Donbas as well as the demilitarisation of the country – a impossible condition for Kyiv and its European partners.
Zelensky commented discussions about the battle positions were the "beginning of diplomacy" but that Moscow was "doing everything" to avoid diplomacy.
He further commented the exclusive issue that could make Moscow "pay attention" was that of the delivery of distance-capable munitions to the Ukrainian military.
Strategic Factors
The Russian president's spontaneous discussion with the US leader last Thursday occurred before reports that the United States was planning to provide long-range Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine that could theoretically target deep into Russia.
The Ukrainian leader said it was the Tomahawks issue that had compelled Moscow to participate in talks. The conversation concerning the weapons systems had emerged as a "strong investment" in diplomacy", he remarked.