The US president, Donald Trump, was expected to meet his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, in the Hungarian capital of Budapest in coming weeks for more talks on ending the war in Ukraine.
However, the summit appears to have been cancelled following a call between the US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, and the Russian foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov. The White House gave no reason for the cancellation but some reports suggest the two country’s positions on Ukraine were seen as too far apart to make a face-to-face meeting worthwhile.
While the summit may yet be revived, scepticism that any progress will be made towards peace is probably the right response. Putin’s own actions have shown how little stock he places in summits and negotiations.
