🔗 Share this article

Currently exist "no arrangements" for US President Donald Trump to meet Russian President Putin "anytime soon", a White House official has announced.

This past week Trump indicated he and the Kremlin leader would hold talks in Budapest soon to address the Ukraine conflict.

A preparatory meeting between US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and his opposite number Sergei Lavrov was scheduled to occur this week - but the White House clarified the two had had a "constructive" call and that a face-to-face session was not "necessary".

The White House declined to provide further information on why the talks had been delayed.

Earlier Events

Trump had discussed a Budapest summit during a call with the Russian leader, a just prior to hosting Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelensky in the White House.

Various sources indicated his meeting with the Ukrainian leader had been a "contentious discussion", with sources indicating Trump had urged him to cede extensive regions of Ukraine's east as part of a agreement with Moscow.

Nevertheless, on Monday the American president embraced a truce plan supported by Ukraine and EU officials to pause the conflict on the current front line.

"Freeze the lines the way it is," he remarked.

Moscow has consistently objected against pausing the existing front lines.

The Russian government was only interested in "enduring stability", Lavrov said on Tuesday, indicating that freezing the front line would only amount to a short-term truce.

Political Perspectives

The "underlying reasons" of the hostilities required resolution, Lavrov said, using Kremlin shorthand for a set of extensive requirements that include the recognition of total Russian authority over the Donbas as well as the demilitarisation of the country – a non-starter for Kyiv and its Western allies.

Zelensky said talks regarding the battle positions were the "start of negotiations" but that Russia was "doing everything" to evade negotiations.

He further commented the sole subject that could make Moscow "pay attention" was that of the provision of extended-range arms to the Ukrainian military.

Strategic Factors

The Russian president's unscheduled call with Trump recently preceded rumors that the US was considering delivering extended-range cruise missiles to Ukrainian forces that could potentially strike deep into Russia.

The Ukrainian leader said it was the Tomahawks issue that had compelled Moscow to engage in discussion. The conversation concerning the missiles had turned out to be a "significant input" in negotiations", he remarked.