Trump talked to Putin. “I'll meet him in Budapest”

US President Donald Trump announced on Thursday that he had made good progress during a phone call with Vladimir Putin. He announced that a meeting of high-level delegations of both countries would soon take place, and then a meeting of leaders in Budapest.

“I just finished a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin and it was very productive (…) At the end of the call, we agreed to hold a meeting of our high-level advisers next week. The first meetings from the United States will be led by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, along with other people to be designated. The location of the meeting will be determined soon. President Putin and I will then meet in agreed location, Budapest, Hungary, to see if we can put an end to this 'infamous' war between Russia and Ukraine,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

He noted that the conversation had brought “great progress” and that he would discuss it during Friday's meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the White House.

Trump emphasized that during Thursday's conversation, Putin congratulated him on “The Great Achievement of Peace in the Middle East – something he said we have dreamed of for centuries.” He added that he believed that this success would help in negotiations to end the war in Ukraine.

“President Putin thanked First Lady Melania for her commitment to helping children. He expressed great gratitude and assured that this initiative will continue. We also spent a lot of time talking about trade between Russia and the United States after the end of the war with Ukraine,” Trump reported.

According to unofficial information, the meeting in Budapest could take place in the first days of Novemberon President Trump's way back from the Asia-Pacific Economic Community (APEC) summit in South Korea, where he is scheduled to meet Chinese leader Xi Jinping.

The Trump-Putin conversation took place a day before the planned visit of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to the White House. Discussions at the White House were to include, among others: selling Tomahawk missiles with a range of over 1.5 thousand to Ukraine km. However, Trump announced that before he makes a decision on this matter, he wants to talk to the Russian leader, because such a step would constitute a “new phase of aggression.” He also said that he informed Zelensky about his intention to talk to Putin.

“I would talk to Putin first and I might say, 'Listen, if this war doesn't get resolved, I'm going to send them Tomahawks,'” Trump said.

According to the Financial Times, the idea is to send Ukraine only a few dozen missiles, which, however, would be the missiles with the longest range that Kiev has received from its Western partners. Their range is over 1,500 km, while the French-British SCALP/Storm Shadows – 250-400 km. However, the problem is the lack of launchers for these missiles in Ukraine's resources.

Even before the end of Trump's conversation with Putin, the leader of the Republicans in the Senate, John Thune, announced that after months of delay, he was ready to proceed with the bill on harsh sanctions against Russia. Until now, Republicans have been waiting for the White House's approval on this matter.

Trump had already announced similar sanctions earlier, giving Russia an ultimatum, but ultimately withdrew from this intention after a conversation with Putin, during which they agreed to meet. This finally happened on August 15 in Anchorage, Alaska. Budapest was already among the potential meeting places mentioned.

When asked about the possibility of Putin meeting with President Zelensky, White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt told reporters that Trump “thinks it's possible.”

From Washington Oskar Górzyński (PAP)

osk/mms/