Trump-Putin Meeting Remains Uncertain as Officials Clarify Future Plans

U.S. President Donald Trump does not have any immediate plans to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin, a U.S. official revealed on Tuesday. This comes just days after Trump indicated a potential meeting in Budapest within a two-week timeframe.

On Monday, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio held a phone conversation with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, following Trump’s statement that the two top diplomats would convene this week to discuss arrangements for a summit in Budapest.

“A further in-person meeting between the secretary and foreign minister isn’t essential, and currently there are no scheduled plans for President Trump to engage with President Putin in the near future,” an anonymous official from the Trump administration stated.

However, the official characterized the discussion between Rubio and Lavrov as «productive.»

The Kremlin also indicated on Tuesday that there is no «specific timeline» established for a summit between Trump and Putin.

On Thursday, the Russian leader spoke with Trump, who was slated to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky the following day to talk about the provision of U.S.-made Tomahawk missiles capable of reaching deep into Russia.

Trump lauded the conversation as a step forward, quickly taking to social media to announce his planned meeting with Putin in Budapest within two weeks.

This represents another sudden shift in Trump’s stance, particularly after he welcomed Putin to Alaska in August—his first visit to Western territory since launching the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

Trump has expressed his frustrations with Putin, despite previously boasting that he could resolve the conflict within a day of returning to the White House, thanks to his personal rapport with the Russian leader.