Following President Trump’s social media post announcing a summit with Vladimir Putin, administration officials moved on Tuesday to clarify the situation. An official, speaking anonymously, stated there are “no plans” for a meeting in the “immediate future.”
Trump had claimed last week, after a call with Putin, that a meeting in Budapest would happen within two weeks.
The Kremlin also tempered expectations on Tuesday, with a spokesperson stating there is “no precise timeframe” for any summit.
Trump’s announcement did prompt a “productive” phone call on Monday between US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
Despite the call, the US official said a follow-up in-person meeting between the diplomats was “not necessary.” This diplomatic confusion unfolds as Trump was also slated to meet Ukraine’s President Zelensky to discuss providing Tomahawk missiles.
