🔗 Share this article Preparations for Trump-Putin Talks Delayed Shortly Following Budapest Negotiations Suggested Putin and Trump last met in late summer in Alaska and the US president had said additional talks would take place in the Hungarian capital There are "no plans" for American leader Donald Trump to confer with Russia's Vladimir Putin "in the near term", a administration representative has stated. This past week Trump indicated he and the Kremlin leader would conduct negotiations in Hungary's capital within two weeks to discuss the ongoing hostilities. A preparatory meeting between America's top diplomat Secretary Rubio and his opposite number Foreign Minister Lavrov was planned for recently - but the White House said the two had had a "constructive" discussion and that a meeting was no longer "required". The administration did not share any more details on the reason the negotiations had been delayed. Previous Developments The US president had discussed a Budapest summit during a call with the Russian leader, a just prior to meeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in the White House. Various sources suggested his talks with the Ukrainian leader had been a "heated exchange", with those familiar indicating Trump had urged him to give up large areas of Ukraine's east as part of a agreement with Russia. Nevertheless, on this week Trump endorsed a truce plan endorsed by Kyiv and European leaders to freeze the hostilities on the present positions. "Freeze the lines the way it is," he said. Moscow has frequently resisted against pausing the existing front lines. Moscow was only interested in "enduring stability", Lavrov stated on this week, implying that freezing the front line would simply constitute a brief pause. Political Perspectives The "underlying reasons" of the war required resolution, the Russian diplomat emphasized, using Moscow's terminology for a range of extensive requirements that include the acceptance of total Russian authority over the eastern region as well as the demilitarisation of Ukraine – a unacceptable proposition for Kyiv and its European partners. The Ukrainian president stated talks regarding the battle positions were the "start of negotiations" but that Moscow was "employing all tactics" to avoid diplomacy. He additionally stated the exclusive issue that could cause Russia to "become engaged" was that of the supply of extended-range arms to Ukraine. Military Considerations The Russian president's spontaneous discussion with the US leader last Thursday preceded speculation that the United States was considering delivering distance-capable weapons to Ukrainian forces that could possibly hit Russian territory. The Ukrainian leader stated it was the Tomahawks issue that had pressured the Kremlin to participate in talks. The discussion regarding the weapons systems had proven to be a "significant input" in international relations", he commented.