🔗 Share this article

There are "no arrangements" for American leader President Trump to meet Russia's Putin "anytime soon", a administration representative has declared.

Last Thursday Trump said he and the Russian president would meet in Budapest within two weeks to examine the Ukraine conflict.

A initial discussion between US Secretary of State Secretary Rubio and his opposite number Foreign Minister Lavrov was due to be held this week - but the White House clarified the two had had a "constructive" discussion and that a meeting was not "necessary".

The White House withheld any more details on the reason the negotiations had been delayed.

Background Context

The US president had raised the possibility of a Hungarian meeting via telephone with the Russian leader, a just prior to meeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in the Oval Office.

Some reports suggested his meeting with Zelensky had been a "contentious discussion", with those familiar suggesting the president had pressured him to relinquish large areas of Ukraine's east as part of a deal with Russia.

Nevertheless, on this week the American president endorsed a peace initiative backed by Ukraine and European leaders to halt the hostilities on the current front line.

"Leave it as is in its current state," he remarked.

Moscow has repeatedly pushed back against pausing the present battle positions.

Moscow was solely focused on "permanent resolution", Lavrov stated on Tuesday, implying that pausing conflict would merely represent a temporary ceasefire.

Diplomatic Positions

The "root causes" of the war required resolution, Lavrov stated, using Russian diplomatic language for a range of extensive requirements that encompass the acknowledgment of full Russian sovereignty over the Donbas as well as the demilitarisation of the country – a non-starter for Ukraine and its European partners.

Zelensky said discussions about the battle positions were the "start of negotiations" but that Moscow was "taking all measures" to prevent dialogue.

He further commented the sole subject that could cause Russia to "take notice" was that of the supply of extended-range arms to the Ukrainian military.

Military Considerations

The Russian president's spontaneous discussion with Trump recently occurred before speculation that the US was preparing to send distance-capable weapons to Ukrainian forces that could potentially strike Russian territory.

The Ukrainian leader asserted it was the missile discussion that had compelled Moscow to enter into dialogue. The discussion regarding the weapons systems had emerged as a "strong investment" in diplomacy", he commented.