According to the Kremlin, “the dates have not yet been determined” and “careful preparation” is needed, which will take time. But he guarantees that there are no “significant obstacles”
Russia confirmed this Wednesday that it continues to prepare a possible summit between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump, even though there is no date for the meeting and even though the president of the United States has said that there will not be one. According to Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, Vladimir Putin also wants to avoid a meeting that does not produce concrete results, referring to Trump’s reaction after the phone call between Rubio and Lavrov.
The previous week, Trump had mentioned, after a telephone conversation with Putin, the possibility of a meeting in Budapest, as part of diplomatic efforts to end the war in Ukraine. However, the US president stated on Tuesday that he does not want to participate in a meeting that turns out to be “a waste of time”.
Peskov reinforced that “the dates have not yet been determined” and that “careful preparation” is necessary, which will require time. Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov confirmed this Wednesday that preparations are continuing, stating that there are no “significant obstacles”. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, a possible host of the summit, also expressed the same position.
Trump, who has repeatedly defended his intention to end the war in Ukraine, has yet to achieve concrete progress since taking office. His rapprochement with Russia led to a summit with Putin in Alaska in August. Currently, Moscow controls around 19% of Ukrainian territory.
Ukraine and European allies are calling for an immediate ceasefire on the current front lines before any peace talks – a position Trump said he supported following his recent meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
However, for the Kremlin, its position remains, as Sergei Lavrov, Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs, highlighted on Tuesday.
