Why Trump-Putin Budapest Meet Has Been Called Off and What it Means for Russia-Ukraine War

Plans for a second summit between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin have been dropped.US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that he had shelved plans for the summit because he did not want a “wasted” meeting. “I don’t want to have a wasted meeting,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office when asked why the Putin encounter had been put off. “I don’t want to have a waste of time, so I’ll see what happens.”The meeting, which had been announced by Trump just last week after a two-hour phone call with Putin, was to have taken place in Budapest. Earlier in the day, White House officials had said it was no longer being arranged following talks between US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. “Secretary Rubio and Foreign Minister Lavrov had a productive call,” a White House official said. “Therefore, an additional in-person meeting between the Secretary and Foreign Minister is not necessary, and there are no plans for President Trump to meet with President Putin in the immediate future.” What Has Russia Said on the Meeting The decision comes two months after Trump and Putin met in Alaska and reflects continued deadlock over Russia’s war in Ukraine. Moscow has maintained that peace talks must precede any ceasefire, something that Washington views as an obstacle to ending the conflict. In a press conference in Moscow, Lavrov said Russia’s position “has not changed.” “I believe American officials have concluded that Russia’s position has remained largely unchanged over time and remains within the bounds of its initial maximalist demands,” he said. “Russia has not altered its positions compared to understandings and prolonged negotiations between Putin and Trump in Alaska.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kuyOyO3NNY8Russia continues to insist that the “root causes” of the war lie in Ukraine’s growing ties with Europe and its desire to join NATO. Putin has repeatedly questioned the legitimacy of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, demanded new elections in Ukraine, and called for assurances that the country will not join NATO. He has also alleged, without evidence, that Ukraine is overrun by “Nazis.” “We remain entirely committed to this formula and I confirmed it yesterday in the conversation with Marco Rubio,” Lavrov added. He also raised doubts over how Putin could travel to Budapest, citing Poland’s warning that it would enforce the International Criminal Court’s arrest warrant if Putin entered its airspace. Trump’s earlier meeting with Putin in Alaska ended without concessions from the Russian leader. Despite Trump’s claims that Putin wanted peace, Russia has continued to carry out strikes on Ukrainian cities and refused to engage directly with Kyiv.Also Read: Inside Trump’s Explosive Meeting with Zelenskyy – ‘Putin Will Destroy Ukraine If…’ Following his recent phone call with Putin, Trump had again claimed “great progress” and announced plans for the Budapest meeting. The next day, he hosted President Zelenskyy at the White House but declined his request for US-made Tomahawk missiles, instead urging Ukraine to cede territory as part of a potential settlement, according to multiple reports. Lavrov said Moscow had rejected “signals coming out of Washington” suggesting the US favoured a ceasefire along current battle lines. “The main thing is not the location or the timeframe, but how we will proceed on the substance of those matters,” Lavrov said. “The objectives that we agreed upon and reached a broad understanding in Anchorage.”