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The anticipated meeting between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Hungary has been postponed, with officials from both Washington and Moscow confirming that a new date has not been decided.
Plans for the Budapest summit remain paused after a ‘constructive but inconclusive’ phone discussion earlier this week between US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, according to officials familiar with the matter.
President Trump, who spoke with Putin by phone last week, had previously said he was ready to meet the Russian leader soon in hopes of advancing efforts to end the Russia–Ukraine war.
Yet, speaking to reporters in Washington on Tuesday, he noted he did not want ‘a wasted meeting’, Xinhua News Agency reported.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said the potential summit remains under consideration but stressed that ‘substantial groundwork’ would be essential before the two leaders meet.
Despite the postponement, Russia’s special envoy for investment and economic cooperation, Kirill Dmitriev, posted on X late Tuesday that officials are continuing preparations for a future meeting and have only delayed the event, not cancelled it.
Recent Diplomatic Context
The development follows Trump’s meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the White House on Friday, during which the US president dismissed the idea of a three-way summit with Russia and Ukraine, citing the strained relations between Moscow and Kyiv.
Trump and Putin last met in Alaska in August, but those discussions ended without agreement, leaving ceasefire negotiations at an impasse.
On 16 October, Trump revived his efforts to end what he termed the ‘inglorious’ Russia–Ukraine conflict, announcing that he would soon meet with Putin.
After speaking with the Russian president, Trump said on Truth Social that he believed they had made great progress during their telephone conversation.
Kremlin Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov later confirmed that the phone call between the two leaders had taken place.
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