Plans for Trump-Putin Meeting Postponed Shortly Following Budapest Negotiations Suggested

Currently exist "no plans" for US President President Trump to confer with Russia's Putin "in the immediate future", a White House official has announced.

This past week the US president indicated he and the Kremlin leader would hold talks in Budapest soon to discuss the war in Ukraine.

A planning session between America's top diplomat Marco Rubio and his opposite number Sergei Lavrov was due to be held this week - but the administration stated the two had had a "positive" call and that a meeting was not "required".

The administration declined to provide additional specifics on the reason the negotiations had been postponed.

Previous Developments

Trump had discussed a Hungarian meeting over the phone with the Russian leader, a day before meeting Ukraine's President Zelensky in the Oval Office.

Some reports claimed his talks with the Ukrainian leader had been a "shouting match", with sources claiming the president had pushed him to relinquish large areas of eastern Ukraine as part of a settlement with Moscow.

Nevertheless, on Monday Trump endorsed a peace initiative backed by Ukraine and EU officials to pause the war on the current front line.

"Freeze the lines the way it is," he stated.

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

Moscow was solely focused on "permanent resolution", Russia's foreign minister stated on Tuesday, suggesting that pausing conflict would merely represent a temporary ceasefire.

Political Perspectives

The "fundamental issues" of the hostilities demanded attention, Lavrov said, using Kremlin shorthand for a series of extensive requirements that involve the acceptance of complete Moscow control over the Donbas as well as the disarmament of Ukraine – a impossible condition for Ukraine and its EU supporters.

The Ukrainian president stated conversations concerning the front line were the "start of negotiations" but that Moscow was "doing everything" to avoid diplomacy.

He further commented the exclusive issue that could cause Russia to "take notice" was that of the provision of long-range weapons to Ukraine.

Weapons Discussions

Putin's unplanned conversation with the US leader last Thursday came ahead of rumors that the United States was preparing to send long-range Tomahawk missiles to Ukrainian forces that could theoretically target inside Russia.

Zelensky said it was the Tomahawks issue that had compelled Moscow to participate in talks. The talk about the weapons systems had turned out to be a "valuable contribution" in negotiations", he commented.