Kremlin abandons idea of imminent meeting between Trump and Putin

 Russia has joined the United States in publicly backing away from the idea of face-to-face talks between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin to discuss the war in Ukraine.

There is "no need" for a hastily arranged meeting at this time, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Sunday, the state-run TASS news agency reported. "What is needed now is very careful work on the details of a settlement," he said.

Trump said after an October 16 phone call with Putin that he hoped to hold talks within two weeks in the Hungarian capital, Budapest, aimed at ending the war.

But subsequent contacts between Washington and Moscow appeared to convince US officials that Russia was unwilling to soften its maximalist demands on Ukraine.

Trump has since postponed the summit indefinitely, saying it would be a "wasted meeting." He then, for the first time, imposed tough sanctions on two Russian oil companies on October 22.

Peskov reiterated Moscow’s position that Russia rejects calls from the United States, Europe and Ukraine for a ceasefire ahead of negotiations. The Kremlin maintains that a political agreement must first be reached before the fighting can stop.