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There are "no plans" for American leader President Trump to confer with Russia's Putin "anytime soon", a White House official has declared.

Last Thursday Trump indicated he and the Russian president would hold talks in Budapest in the coming fortnight to address the ongoing hostilities.

A preparatory meeting between America's top diplomat Secretary Rubio and his opposite number Foreign Minister Lavrov was planned for this week - but the White House stated the two had had a "positive" call and that a meeting was no longer "needed".

The administration did not share additional specifics on the reason the negotiations had been delayed.

Earlier Events

Trump had raised the possibility of a Budapest summit during a call with Putin, a day before hosting Ukrainian President President Zelensky in the Oval Office.

Some reports indicated his meeting with the Ukrainian leader had been a "shouting match", with insiders claiming the president had urged him to give up significant territories of Ukraine's east as part of a settlement with Moscow.

Yet, on Monday the American president endorsed a peace initiative backed by Ukraine and EU officials to pause the war on the present positions.

"Let it be cut where it stands," he remarked.

Moscow has consistently objected against pausing the present battle positions.

Moscow was solely focused on "long-term, sustainable peace", Russia's foreign minister said on Tuesday, implying that pausing conflict would only amount to a short-term truce.

Political Perspectives

The "underlying reasons" of the hostilities required resolution, Lavrov emphasized, using Moscow's terminology for a series of comprehensive conditions that include the recognition of total Russian authority over the Donbas as well as the disarmament of the country – a impossible condition for Ukraine and its European partners.

Zelensky commented discussions about the current lines were the "beginning of diplomacy" but that Moscow was "employing all tactics" to evade negotiations.

He additionally stated the sole subject that could cause Russia to "become engaged" was that of the supply of distance-capable munitions to the Ukrainian military.

Military Considerations

The Russian president's spontaneous discussion with Trump recently came ahead of rumors that the United States was considering delivering long-range Tomahawk missiles to Ukrainian forces that could possibly hit Russian territory.

Zelensky said it was the missile discussion that had pressured the Kremlin to engage in discussion. The talk about the missiles had emerged as a "significant input" in negotiations", he commented.