A highly anticipated summit between President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin will not take place in the immediate future, a senior US official confirmed Tuesday. The announcement contradicts Trump’s recent social media posts claiming the two leaders would meet in Budapest within two weeks, highlighting the unpredictable nature of current US-Russia diplomatic relations.
The decision came after Secretary of State Marco Rubio conducted a telephone conversation with his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, on Monday. The call was originally intended to finalize arrangements for the Budapest meeting, but American officials have concluded that further diplomatic preparations are unnecessary at this stage.
According to the anonymous US official, the Monday telephone exchange between the two foreign ministers was “productive,” suggesting that meaningful dialogue occurred despite the absence of concrete plans for a presidential summit. The Kremlin has echoed this uncertainty, with Russian officials stating Tuesday that no “precise timeframe” exists for arranging a Trump-Putin meeting.
The confusion surrounding the summit began following a Thursday phone call between Trump and Putin, which the American president initially celebrated as a diplomatic breakthrough. Trump’s enthusiasm led him to announce on social media that he would meet Putin in Budapest within two weeks, timing that coincided with his scheduled meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky regarding the potential provision of Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine.
Trump’s relationship with Putin has been characterized by dramatic reversals, including the controversial decision in August to host Putin in Alaska, marking the Russian leader’s first appearance on Western soil since ordering the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine. While Trump previously boasted about his ability to leverage personal chemistry with Putin to end the war quickly, he has recently admitted to experiencing frustrations in dealing with the Russian president.