Trump And Putin's Meeting Canceled After Moscow Sends Memos To Washington

JAKARTA - The United States canceled plans for a meeting in Budapest between President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin following Russia's firm stance on hardline demands regarding Ukraine.

The decision comes after a tense telephone conversation between the top diplomats of the two countries, reports the Financial Times, citing sources familiar with the matter.

Reuters could not immediately verify the FT report. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Officials in the Russian government were also unable to immediately be reached for comment.

The plan for a meeting in Budapest this month between Trump and Putin was postponed after Moscow remained on demand, including Ukraine having to give up more territory as a condition of the ceasefire.

Trump supports Ukraine's call for an immediate ceasefire by sticking to the current line.

Days after Trump and Putin agreed to meet in the Hungarian capital to discuss how to end Russia's war in Ukraine, the Russian Foreign Ministry sent a memo to Washington underlining the same demands to address what Putin called its "root of the cause" invasion, which includes territorial concessions, a drastic reduction in Ukraine's armed forces, and guarantees Ukraine will never join NATO, the newspaper reported.

The US later canceled the summit following a phone call between Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio. After that, Rubio told Trump that Moscow did not show any willingness to negotiate, the FT report added.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said this month that although Ukraine is ready for peace negotiations, the country will not withdraw its troops from additional territory as Moscow requested.