Trump and Putin Plan Budapest Summit to Discuss Ukraine Conflict

U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin have agreed to hold a summit in Budapest to discuss ending the ongoing war in Ukraine. The decision follows a recent phone conversation between the two leaders, during which Trump proposed the meeting location, and Putin promptly accepted.

Prior to the summit, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov are expected to meet in the coming days to prepare for the discussions. The timing of the summit will depend on the progress of these preparatory talks.

The upcoming summit follows an earlier meeting between Trump and Putin in Alaska in August, which did not yield significant progress toward peace. In the interim, Trump has expressed frustration over Russia's continued aggression in Ukraine and has indicated a willingness to provide Ukraine with long-range Tomahawk missiles if Putin does not engage in serious negotiations.

Additionally, Trump announced that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi assured him that India would cease purchasing oil from Russia, a move aimed at increasing economic pressure on Moscow to end the conflict. This development has not yet been confirmed by the Indian government.

The war in Ukraine, now nearing its fourth year, began with Russia's invasion in 2022. Efforts to broker peace have been ongoing, with varying degrees of success. The planned Budapest summit represents the latest attempt by the U.S. and Russia to negotiate an end to the conflict.