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There are "no plans" for US President President Trump to meet Russia's Putin "in the near term", a administration representative has stated.

Last Thursday Trump said he and the Kremlin leader would meet in Budapest in the coming fortnight to address the war in Ukraine.

A preparatory meeting between US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov was planned for this week - but the White House stated the two had had a "constructive" conversation and that a meeting was no longer "required".

The White House did not share additional specifics on why the talks had been delayed.

Earlier Events

Trump had discussed a Hungarian meeting during a call with the Russian leader, a just prior to meeting Ukraine's President Zelensky in the White House.

Some reports indicated his talks with Zelensky had been a "shouting match", with insiders suggesting the president had urged him to cede extensive regions of eastern Ukraine as part of a settlement with Russia.

Yet, on Monday the American president endorsed a truce plan backed by Ukraine and European leaders to freeze the war on the current front line.

"Leave it as is the way it is," he remarked.

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

Moscow was only interested in "enduring stability", Lavrov said on this week, indicating that pausing conflict would merely represent a temporary ceasefire.

Political Perspectives

The "fundamental issues" of the hostilities needed to be addressed, Lavrov emphasized, using Russian diplomatic language for a set of comprehensive conditions that encompass the acceptance of full Russian sovereignty over the Donbas as well as the disarmament of Ukraine – a unacceptable proposition for Kyiv and its European partners.

The Ukrainian president said discussions about the battle positions were the "commencement of dialogue" but that Russia was "employing all tactics" to prevent dialogue.

He further commented the only topic that could make Moscow "become engaged" was that of the supply of distance-capable munitions to Ukraine.

Weapons Discussions

The Russian president's unplanned conversation with the US leader last Thursday occurred before reports that the United States was preparing to send long-range Tomahawk missiles to Ukrainian forces that could possibly hit deep into Russia.

Zelensky said it was the weapons consideration that had compelled Moscow to engage in discussion. The conversation concerning the weapons systems had proven to be a "valuable contribution" in international relations", he commented.