🔗 Share this article Preparations for Putin-Trump Talks Shelved Shortly Following Hungarian Capital Talks Suggested Trump and Putin previously convened in August in the northern US state and the US president had stated further talks would take place in the Hungarian capital Currently exist "no arrangements" for US President President Trump to meet Russia's Vladimir Putin "in the immediate future", a White House official has announced. Recently Trump stated he and the Russian president would hold talks in Hungary's capital in the coming fortnight to examine the war in Ukraine. A preparatory meeting between America's top diplomat Marco Rubio and his opposite number Foreign Minister Lavrov was scheduled to occur recently - but the administration stated the two had had a "positive" discussion and that a meeting was no longer "required". The administration did not share further information on why the talks had been delayed. Previous Developments Trump had raised the possibility of a Budapest summit over the phone with Putin, a just prior to hosting Ukraine's President Zelensky in the Oval Office. Some reports suggested his meeting with Zelensky had been a "contentious discussion", with insiders claiming Trump had pushed him to relinquish significant territories of Ukraine's east as part of a settlement with Russia. Yet, on Monday the American president supported a peace initiative backed by Ukraine and European leaders to pause the conflict on the present positions. "Let it be cut where it stands," he stated. Moscow has consistently objected against freezing the existing front lines. The Russian government was solely focused on "enduring stability", Lavrov commented on Tuesday, suggesting that halting hostilities would only amount to a brief pause. Diplomatic Positions The "underlying reasons" of the war required resolution, Lavrov emphasized, using Russian diplomatic language for a series of maximalist demands that encompass the acceptance of total Russian authority over the Donbas as well as the military reduction of Ukraine – a unacceptable proposition for Kyiv and its European partners. Zelensky stated discussions about the current lines were the "beginning of diplomacy" but that Russia was "doing everything" to prevent dialogue. He also said the only topic that could cause Russia to "become engaged" was that of the supply of long-range weapons to Ukraine. Strategic Factors Putin's spontaneous discussion with Trump last Thursday occurred before speculation that the United States was planning to provide distance-capable weapons to Ukraine that could theoretically target deep into Russia. Zelensky asserted it was the weapons consideration that had pressured the Kremlin to enter into dialogue. The talk about the missiles had proven to be a "significant input" in international relations", he commented.