Trump doesn't want 'wasted meeting' with Putin, confirms talks on Ukraine war ar

President Donald Trump said on Tuesday his plan for a swift meeting with Russian leader Vladimir Putin was on hold because he did not want it to be a waste of time It was the latest twist in Trumps stopandgo effort to resolve the war in UkraineThe decision to hold off on the meeting in Budapest Hungary which Trump had announced last week was made following a call on Monday between Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov I dont want to have a wasted meeting Trump said I dont want to have a waste of time so well see what happensLavrov made clear in public comments on Tuesday that Russia is opposed to an immediate ceasefire Trump meanwhile has been shifting his stance all year on key issues in the war including whether a ceasefire should come before longerterm peace talks and whether Ukraine could win back land seized by Russia during almost four years of fightingTrumps hesitancy in meeting Putin will likely come as a relief to European leaders who have accused Putin of stalling for time with diplomacy while trying to gain ground on the battlefield The leaders including the British prime minister French president and German chancellor said they opposed any push to make Ukraine surrender land captured by Russian forces in return for peace as Trump most recently has suggestedThey also plan to push forward with plans to use billions of dollars in frozen Russian assets to help fund Ukraines war efforts despite some misgivings about the legality and consequences of such a step The US and Russian presidents last met in Alaska in August but the encounter did not advance Trumps stalled attempts to end a war that began with Russias fullscale invasion in February 2022The Kremlin did not seem to be in a rush to get Trump and Putin together again either Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Tuesday that preparation is needed serious preparation before a meeting Trump suggested that decisions about the meeting would be made in the coming daysWhat Ukraine wants from the USUkrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has been trying to strengthen Ukraines position by seeking longrange Tomahawk missiles from the US although Trump has waffled on whether he would provide them We need to end this war and only pressure will lead to peace Zelenskyy said Tuesday in a Telegram postHe noted that Putin returned to diplomacy and called Trump last week when it looked like Tomahawk missiles were a possibility But as soon as the pressure eased a little the Russians began to try to drop diplomacy postpone the dialogue Zelenskyy saidOn Wednesday Trump is expected to hold talks in the White House with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte The military alliance has been coordinating deliveries of weapons to Ukraine many of them purchased from the US by Canada and European countries A meeting of the Coalition of the Willing a group of 35 countries who support Ukraine is due to take place in London on FridayHow Trumps stance on the war has shiftedTrump initially focused on pressuring Ukraine to make concessions but then grew frustrated with Putins intransigence Trump often complains that he thought his good relationship with his Russian counterpart would have made it easier to end the warLast month Trump reversed his longheld position that Ukraine would have to give up land and suggested it could win back all the territory it has lost to Russia But after a phone call with Putin last week and a subsequent meeting with Zelenskyy on Friday Trump shifted his position again and called on Kyiv and Moscow to stop where they are and end the warOn Sunday Trump said the industrial Donbas region of eastern Ukraine should be cut up leaving most of it in Russian hands Trump said on Monday that while he thinks it is possible that Ukraine can ultimately defeat Russia he is now doubtful it will happenUkrainian and European leaders trying to keep Trump on their sideWe strongly support President Trumps position that the fighting should stop immediately and that the current line of contact should be the starting point of negotiations the leaders statement said We can all see that Putin continues to choose violence and destructionLavrov made clear on Tuesday that Russia opposes a ceasefire Russian state news agencies reported He told journalists in Moscow that it would go against what the two presidents agreed upon in Alaska Trump had hoped to get Russia to stop the fighting but he was rebuffed by Putin who has pushed for a comprehensive settlement to end the warRussia occupies about one fifth of Ukraine but carving up their country in return for peace is unacceptable to Kyiv officials Also a conflict frozen on the current front line could fester with occupied areas of Ukraine offering Moscow a springboard for new attacks in the future Ukrainian and European officials fearThe statement by the leaders of Ukraine the UK Finland France Germany Italy Norway Poland Denmark and EU officials came early in what Zelenskyy said on Monday would be a week that is very active in diplomacyMore international economic sanctions on Russia are likely to be discussed at an EU summit in Brussels on Thursday We must ramp up the pressure on Russias economy and its defence industry until Putin is ready to make peace Tuesdays statement saidThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever