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Currently exist "no preparations" for US President President Trump to confer with Russian President Putin "in the near term", a administration representative has announced.

Last Thursday Trump stated he and the Kremlin leader would meet in Budapest in the coming fortnight to address the ongoing hostilities.

A preparatory meeting between US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and his opposite number Foreign Minister Lavrov was scheduled to occur this week - but the administration stated the two had had a "productive" discussion and that a face-to-face session was not "required".

The White House withheld additional specifics on why the talks had been put on hold.

Background Context

Trump had raised the possibility of a Hungarian meeting during a call with the Russian leader, a day before hosting Ukraine's President Zelensky in the White House.

Certain accounts claimed his talks with the Ukrainian leader had been a "shouting match", with those familiar suggesting Trump had pushed him to give up large areas of Ukraine's east as part of a agreement with Russia.

Yet, on this week the American president embraced a truce plan endorsed by Ukraine and EU officials to freeze the war on the existing battle lines.

"Let it be cut in its current state," he stated.

Moscow has repeatedly pushed back against freezing the current line of contact.

The Russian government was solely focused on "long-term, sustainable peace", Lavrov stated on this week, indicating that freezing the front line would merely represent a short-term truce.

Diplomatic Positions

The "root causes" of the conflict required resolution, Lavrov stated, using Russian diplomatic language for a range of maximalist demands that involve the acceptance of total Russian authority over the eastern region as well as the disarmament of the country – a impossible condition for Ukraine and its EU supporters.

The Ukrainian president commented discussions about the battle positions were the "start of negotiations" but that Russia was "taking all measures" to prevent dialogue.

He also said the only topic that could cause Russia to "pay attention" was that of the provision of extended-range arms to Ukraine.

Strategic Factors

Putin's unplanned conversation with the US leader last Thursday preceded reports that the US was planning to provide distance-capable weapons to Ukrainian forces that could potentially strike inside Russia.

The Ukrainian leader stated it was the missile discussion that had pressured the Kremlin to enter into dialogue. The discussion regarding the missiles had turned out to be a "significant input" in diplomacy", he remarked.