Plans for Trump-Putin Talks Shelved Days After Budapest Negotiations Announced

There are "no arrangements" for US President President Trump to confer with Russian President Vladimir Putin "anytime soon", a White House official has declared.

Recently Trump indicated he and the Kremlin leader would meet in Budapest in the coming fortnight to discuss the war in Ukraine.

A initial discussion between America's top diplomat Marco Rubio and his Russian counterpart Foreign Minister Lavrov was planned for recently - but the administration clarified the two had had a "positive" conversation and that a face-to-face session was no longer "required".

The White House declined to provide further information on the reason the negotiations had been postponed.

Previous Developments

The US president had discussed a Budapest summit via telephone with the Russian leader, a just prior to meeting Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelensky in the White House.

Some reports suggested his talks with Zelensky had been a "heated exchange", with sources claiming Trump had pressured him to cede significant territories of Ukraine's east as part of a agreement with Russia.

Nevertheless, on Monday Trump supported a truce plan endorsed by Kyiv and European leaders to freeze the war on the present positions.

"Let it be cut where it stands," he stated.

Moscow has frequently resisted against freezing the existing front lines.

Moscow was only interested in "long-term, sustainable peace", Lavrov said on this week, suggesting that halting hostilities would only amount to a temporary ceasefire.

Diplomatic Positions

The "underlying reasons" of the hostilities required resolution, Lavrov stated, using Kremlin shorthand for a range of maximalist demands that encompass the acceptance of total Russian authority over the eastern region as well as the military reduction of Ukraine – a non-starter for Ukraine and its Western allies.

The Ukrainian president commented talks regarding the battle positions were the "start of negotiations" but that Russia was "employing all tactics" to prevent dialogue.

He additionally stated the sole subject that could cause Russia to "take notice" was that of the provision of extended-range arms to the Ukrainian military.

Military Considerations

The Russian president's spontaneous discussion with Trump last Thursday preceded rumors that the US was planning to provide long-range Tomahawk missiles to Ukrainian forces that could potentially strike Russian territory.

The Ukrainian leader said it was the Tomahawks issue that had forced Russia to participate in talks. The conversation concerning the weapons systems had turned out to be a "valuable contribution" in negotiations", he commented.