Officials from both the United States and Russia have confirmed that no precise timeframe exists for a meeting between President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, directly contradicting Trump’s recent announcement of a Budapest summit within two weeks. The synchronized messaging from both capitals represents a rare moment of agreement on diplomatic planning.
Following a Monday telephone conversation between Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, US officials have determined that no additional in-person diplomatic meetings are required. This decision effectively places any potential presidential summit on indefinite hold, despite Trump’s earlier optimistic pronouncements about bilateral relations.
The US administration official, speaking on condition of anonymity, described the Monday phone exchange as “productive,” though no specific timeline or outcomes were provided. The Kremlin adopted a similar stance Tuesday, with Russian officials stating that there is no “precise timeframe” for arranging a Trump-Putin meeting.
The diplomatic confusion originated from a Thursday telephone call between the two presidents, which Trump interpreted as a significant breakthrough. Trump’s enthusiasm prompted him to quickly announce via social media that he would meet Putin in Budapest within two weeks, an announcement timed just before his scheduled meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to discuss potentially providing Ukraine with long-range Tomahawk missiles.
Trump’s handling of relations with Putin has been characterized by dramatic policy shifts, including the controversial August meeting in Alaska that marked Putin’s first appearance on Western soil since launching the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Despite Trump’s previous boasts about his ability to leverage personal chemistry with Putin to end the war quickly, he has recently acknowledged experiencing frustrations in dealing with the Russian president.