Russia Continues Preparations for Trump-Putin Summit Despite Uncertainty Over Timeline

President Trump indicated on Tuesday that he would not participate in meetings that would prove unproductive.

Moscow:

Russian officials confirmed on Wednesday that preparations continue for a potential summit between President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump, though no specific date has been established. They emphasized that Putin, like Trump, values productive use of time.

Following a phone conversation with Putin last week, Trump suggested they might meet in Budapest soon as part of efforts to resolve the Ukraine conflict.

However, Trump stated on Tuesday that he wished to avoid any meeting that would be a "waste of time," and a senior White House official informed Reuters that no Trump-Putin meeting was scheduled "in the immediate future."

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov clarified on Wednesday that dates for any summit "have yet to be determined, but before that, careful preparation is necessary - it takes time."

When questioned about Trump's reluctance to waste time, Peskov responded: "No one wants to waste time, neither President Trump nor President Putin."

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov nevertheless confirmed that summit preparations were proceeding, stating he did not "see any major obstacles." Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who would potentially host the meeting, also indicated that preparations were continuing.

Trump has consistently expressed his aim to end the Ukraine war, Europe's deadliest conflict since World War Two. However, since taking office, he has not achieved a breakthrough, despite diplomatic initiatives toward Russia including an August summit with Putin in Alaska.

Russia currently controls more than 116,000 square km (44,800 square miles), representing over 19 percent of Ukrainian territory.

Ukraine and its European allies have advocated for an immediate ceasefire along current battle lines before any peace negotiations begin, a position Trump publicly endorsed on Friday after meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy. Moscow has established conditions for a ceasefire and called for Ukraine to surrender additional territory.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov indicated that Russia's peace conditions remain unchanged since the Putin-Trump summit in Anchorage.

"The elements of our position are well known to everyone," Kremlin spokesman Peskov stated. "They are very clearly formulated by our president and everyone knows them well."

A meeting scheduled for later this week between Lavrov and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio to prepare for a Trump-Putin summit was postponed on Monday.

Reuters reported, citing unidentified sources, that Russia had restated its previous terms for a peace agreement with Ukraine in a private communication sent to the US over the weekend, known as a "non-paper."

When asked about this Reuters report, Ryabkov said he could not confirm it, adding that Western media often publishes rumors based on unnamed sources that distort the truth.