US President Donald Trump said he did not want a “wasted meeting” with Russian President Vladimir Putin. He spoke in the Oval Office after reporters asked why the planned summit was shelved.

“I don’t want to have a wasted meeting. I don’t want to have a waste of time, so I’ll see what happens,” Trump said. He explained that Russia’s refusal to stop fighting along the front line remains a major obstacle.

Meanwhile, the White House confirmed that there are currently “no plans” for a meeting between the two leaders.

War Developments Influence Decision

When asked what changed his mind, Trump said, “A lot of things are happening on the war front. And we’ll be notifying you over the next two days as to what we’re doing.” Clearly, ongoing military developments have influenced his decision.

Budapest Summit Put on Hold

Weeks after a phone call with Putin, Trump had announced plans to meet him in Budapest later this month. However, the Kremlin indicated that the talks were unlikely to happen.

“We cannot postpone something that has not been finalised,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Reuters. He was responding to reports that a preparatory meeting between US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov had been paused.

Furthermore, Peskov added, “Neither President Trump nor President Putin has given exact dates.”

Preparatory Talks Cancelled

In addition, the White House confirmed that Rubio and Lavrov cancelled their planned meeting to organize the Budapest summit after a phone call on Monday. At this stage, no new dates have been set.