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Currently exist "no plans" for US President President Trump to confer with Russia's Vladimir Putin "anytime soon", a White House official has stated.

This past week Trump stated he and the Kremlin leader would hold talks in Budapest soon to examine the ongoing hostilities.

A preparatory meeting between US Secretary of State Secretary Rubio and his opposite number Foreign Minister Lavrov was planned for this week - but the administration said the two had had a "productive" conversation and that a meeting was no longer "necessary".

The White House did not share further information on why the talks had been delayed.

Earlier Events

The US president had discussed a Hungarian meeting during a call with the Russian leader, a just prior to hosting Ukraine's President Zelensky in the Oval Office.

Various sources indicated his talks with the Ukrainian leader had been a "contentious discussion", with insiders indicating Trump had pushed him to cede significant territories of Ukraine's east as part of a agreement with Russia.

Nevertheless, on this week the American president supported a peace initiative supported by Kyiv and European leaders to freeze the conflict on the current front line.

"Freeze the lines in its current state," he stated.

Russia has repeatedly pushed back against freezing the existing front lines.

Moscow was solely focused on "long-term, sustainable peace", Russia's foreign minister said on this week, suggesting that halting hostilities would only amount to a brief pause.

Diplomatic Positions

The "fundamental issues" of the war demanded attention, the Russian diplomat emphasized, using Moscow's terminology for a range of maximalist demands that involve the acceptance of total Russian authority over the Donbas as well as the disarmament of Ukraine – a non-starter for Ukraine and its Western allies.

Zelensky said conversations concerning the current lines were the "start of negotiations" but that Moscow was "employing all tactics" to avoid diplomacy.

He further commented the exclusive issue that could make Moscow "pay attention" was that of the supply of long-range weapons to Ukraine.

Military Considerations

Putin's unscheduled call with Trump last Thursday preceded speculation that the US was preparing to send extended-range cruise missiles to Ukraine that could possibly hit inside Russia.

The Ukrainian leader said it was the weapons consideration that had pressured the Kremlin to engage in discussion. The talk about the missiles had emerged as a "strong investment" in international relations", he added.