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Currently exist "no plans" for US President Donald Trump to confer with Russia's Putin "in the near term", a administration representative has announced.

Recently Trump indicated he and the Kremlin leader would conduct negotiations in Hungary's capital soon to discuss the ongoing hostilities.

A planning session between US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and his opposite number Sergei Lavrov was planned for this week - but the White House said the two had had a "constructive" call and that a face-to-face session was no longer "required".

The White House did not share further information on why the talks had been delayed.

Background Context

Trump had raised the possibility of a Budapest summit during a call with the Russian leader, a just prior to meeting Ukraine's President Zelensky in the Oval Office.

Certain accounts indicated his meeting with Zelensky had been a "shouting match", with those familiar claiming the president had pushed him to cede significant territories of eastern Ukraine as part of a settlement with Russia.

Yet, on this week the American president supported a peace initiative endorsed by Ukraine and European leaders to halt the conflict on the existing battle lines.

"Let it be cut where it stands," he said.

Moscow has repeatedly pushed back against halting the existing front lines.

Moscow was solely focused on "long-term, sustainable peace", Russia's foreign minister stated on this week, indicating that pausing conflict would only amount to a temporary ceasefire.

Political Perspectives

The "underlying reasons" of the conflict needed to be addressed, Lavrov said, using Russian diplomatic language for a set of extensive requirements that encompass the recognition of complete Moscow control over the Donbas as well as the military reduction of the country – a unacceptable proposition for Ukraine and its European partners.

Zelensky commented conversations concerning the current lines were the "start of negotiations" but that Russia was "employing all tactics" to prevent dialogue.

He also said the exclusive issue that could make Moscow "become engaged" was that of the supply of long-range weapons to Ukraine.

Strategic Factors

The Russian president's unplanned conversation with the US leader last Thursday came ahead of speculation that the US was preparing to send extended-range cruise missiles to Ukrainian forces that could potentially strike deep into Russia.

The Ukrainian leader stated it was the weapons consideration that had forced Russia to participate in talks. The talk about the missiles had emerged as a "strong investment" in diplomacy", he added.