US President Donald Trump has said his plan for a quick meeting with Russian leader Vladimir Putin has been put on hold because he does not want it to be a “waste of time”.
It was the latest twist in Trump’s stop-and-go effort to resolve the war in Ukraine.
Trump called the call progress and quickly posted on social media that he would meet Putin in Budapest within two weeks.
The decision to postpone the meeting was made after a telephone conversation between Foreign Minister Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
“I don’t want to have a wasted meeting,” Trump said Tuesday.
“I don’t want to waste any time, so we’ll see what happens.”
Trump’s hesitation will likely come as a relief to European leaders, who have accused Putin of stalling on diplomacy as he tries to gain ground on the battlefield.
The US and Russian leaders last met in Alaska in August, but the meeting failed to advance Trump’s stalled efforts to end the war in Ukraine.
‘Preparation is needed’ before the next summit
The Kremlin also appeared to be in no hurry to reunite Trump and Putin.
Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said “preparation is needed, serious preparation” before a meeting.
“Listen, we understand the presidents, but we cannot delay what has not yet been completed,” Peskov said.
Trump will hold talks with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, according to a White House official who was not authorized to comment publicly.
The official did not provide details on Wednesday about Trump’s agenda for the talks.
NATO coordinates the supply of weapons to Ukraine, much of which has been purchased from the US by Canada and European countries.
A meeting of the ‘Coalition of the Willing’ – a group of 35 countries supporting Ukraine – will take place in London on Friday.
In addition, European countries are working with Ukraine on a 12-point proposal to end the war between Russia and Ukraine along the current battle lines, Bloomberg News reported.
A peace council chaired by Trump would oversee implementation of the proposed plan, the report said, citing people familiar with the matter.
European leaders have called on the US to remain steadfast in demanding an immediate ceasefire in Ukraine, with current battle lines serving as a basis for any future talks.
The Russian government has long demanded that Ukraine agree to cede more territory before a ceasefire.
Under the proposal, Ukraine would receive security guarantees, funds to repair war damage and a path to rapid accession to the European Union, the Bloomberg report said.
It stated that once Russia follows Ukraine in agreeing to a ceasefire and both sides commit to halting territorial advances, the proposals envision the return of all deported children to Ukraine and the exchange of prisoners.
Both sides would enter into negotiations on the administration of the occupied territories, although neither European countries nor Ukraine will legally recognize any occupied country as Russian, the report said, citing sources.
Reuters could not immediately verify the Bloomberg report.
— With additional reporting by Agence France-Presse, Associated Press and Agencia EFE, SA
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