Plans for Trump-Putin Summit Postponed Shortly Following Budapest Talks Announced

There are "no preparations" for American leader President Trump to confer with Russia's Putin "in the immediate future", a administration representative has announced.

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

A initial discussion between America's top diplomat Secretary Rubio and his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov was planned for recently - but the White House said the two had had a "positive" discussion and that a meeting was not "needed".

The White House withheld any more details on why the talks had been postponed.

Earlier Events

The US president had raised the possibility of a Hungarian meeting over the phone with the Russian leader, a just prior to hosting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in the White House.

Certain accounts claimed his meeting with Zelensky had been a "contentious discussion", with sources claiming the president had urged him to give up significant territories of Ukraine's east as part of a settlement with Moscow.

Yet, on Monday Trump endorsed a peace initiative supported by Ukraine and European leaders to pause the hostilities on the current front line.

"Let it be cut in its current state," he said.

Moscow has consistently objected against freezing the present battle positions.

The Russian government was exclusively seeking "long-term, sustainable peace", Lavrov commented on Tuesday, indicating that freezing the front line would only amount to a temporary ceasefire.

Diplomatic Positions

The "root causes" of the conflict required resolution, the Russian diplomat stated, using Russian diplomatic language for a set of maximalist demands that encompass the acceptance of complete Moscow control over the eastern region as well as the demilitarisation of the country – a unacceptable proposition for Kyiv and its EU supporters.

Zelensky commented discussions about the current lines were the "start of negotiations" but that Moscow was "doing everything" to prevent dialogue.

He further commented the exclusive issue that could make Moscow "take notice" was that of the supply of distance-capable munitions to the Ukrainian military.

Strategic Factors

The Russian president's unplanned conversation with Trump last Thursday preceded speculation that the United States was planning to provide extended-range cruise missiles to Ukraine that could potentially strike inside Russia.

The Ukrainian leader said it was the weapons consideration that had pressured the Kremlin to participate in talks. The talk about the missiles had turned out to be a "valuable contribution" in diplomacy", he added.