Trump-Putin Hungary summit likely to be delayed

On 21 October, Moscow cast doubt on the prospect of an immediate summit between the Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump, which had been intended to pave the way for a swift resolution to the Ukraine conflict, according to Arab News via AFP. The planned meeting has been delayed as Russia continues to refuse a ceasefire, prolonging the diplomatic deadlock and stalling progress toward renewed peace talks.

The development follows a reported two-hour phone conversation on October 16, during which Putin and Trump revealed plans to meet in Budapest to explore ways to resolve the conflict sparked by Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

In the wake of the call, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and US counterpart Marco Rubio held talks on 20 October to review summit preparations, with a face-to-face meeting expected to finalise the arrangements.

Trump had suggested the summit could take place “within two weeks or so,” with senior advisers from both sides meeting beforehand to prepare, though that timeline now appears increasingly uncertain.

Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said it was “premature to talk about the schedule” for the preparatory Lavrov-Rubio discussions.

“Neither before the phone call nor during yesterday’s call was the meeting specifically raised,” Ryabkov told Russian state media.

Trump, who has repeatedly claimed he could end the Ukraine war within hours, has voiced frustration with both Moscow and Kyiv over stalled peace efforts.

His comments come as the U.S government shutdown, which began on October 1, continues without a resolution, leaving thousands of federal workers unpaid and political divisions deepening in Washington. The Trump administration has framed the shutdown as part of a broader effort to downsize the federal government and eliminate what it describes as “Democrat programs,” a stance that has further intensified  tensions in Washington.

Putin has repeatedly dismissed calls for a ceasefire and insisted on a set of rigid demands that Kyiv considers unacceptable.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, seeking to attend the Budapest summit, has rejected any territorial concessions.

A previous summit in Alaska between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump aimed to address the war in Ukraine. Putin called the meeting “frank and informative,” with both leaders expressing a shared interest in ending the conflict. Despite Trump’s push for a ceasefire, no agreement was reached, leaving progress stalled seven months into his presidency.

With Moscow continuing to demand that Ukraine cede additional territory as a precondition for any ceasefire, the future of the war remains deeply uncertain.

Arab News via AFP, Maghrebi, NPR, BBC, Reuters