🔗 Share this article

There are "no plans" for American leader President Trump to meet Russian President Putin "in the immediate future", a administration representative has announced.

Recently the US president stated he and the Kremlin leader would conduct negotiations in Hungary's capital within two weeks to discuss the Ukraine conflict.

A initial discussion between US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and his opposite number Foreign Minister Lavrov was due to be held recently - but the White House clarified the two had had a "constructive" discussion and that a face-to-face session was no longer "necessary".

The administration withheld additional specifics on why the talks had been delayed.

Earlier Events

The US president had discussed a Hungarian meeting over the phone with the Russian leader, a just prior to meeting Ukrainian President President Zelensky in the Oval Office.

Some reports indicated his meeting with the Ukrainian leader had been a "shouting match", with sources suggesting Trump had pressured him to cede large areas of Ukraine's east as part of a settlement with Russia.

However, on Monday the American president endorsed a ceasefire proposal endorsed by Kyiv and European leaders to freeze the war on the current front line.

"Freeze the lines in its current state," he remarked.

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

The Russian government was solely focused on "long-term, sustainable peace", Lavrov stated on Tuesday, suggesting that halting hostilities would only amount to a short-term truce.

Diplomatic Positions

The "root causes" of the hostilities needed to be addressed, the Russian diplomat emphasized, using Russian diplomatic language for a series of maximalist demands that include the recognition of complete Moscow control over the eastern region as well as the disarmament of the country – a impossible condition for Kyiv and its European partners.

Zelensky said talks regarding the front line were the "start of negotiations" but that Moscow was "employing all tactics" to evade negotiations.

He also said the only topic that could cause Russia to "take notice" was that of the delivery of extended-range arms to Ukraine.

Weapons Discussions

Putin's spontaneous discussion with Trump last Thursday preceded reports that the US was considering delivering long-range Tomahawk missiles to Ukrainian forces that could theoretically target deep into Russia.

Zelensky asserted it was the Tomahawks issue that had compelled Moscow to engage in discussion. The discussion regarding the missiles had proven to be a "valuable contribution" in international relations", he added.