Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin could be set to meet in Hungary next week for talks on ending Ukraine war

Irish Independent

09-08-2025

The leaders could come face to face as early as next week, with Washington and Moscow yet to reach a decision on a destination.
Switzerland, Italy, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have also been touted as possible destinations for the meeting, according to Fox News.
Alexander Lukashenko, the Belarus dictator, has also offered to host future talks, including a three-way gathering between Mr Trump, Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukraine's president.
According to Time magazine, the ­Belarusian president, who is a long-time Putin ally, has maintained contact with the Trump administration since the start of the year, creating a back-channel to the Kremlin via Minsk.
During these discussions, Mr Lukashenko reportedly 'coached' US officials on how to keep talks with Russian leadership on track, paving the way for peace negotiations between the three leaders.
Officials organising the summits, which it is hoped could bring an end to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, face a diplomatic juggling act to make them a reality.
Putin is significantly curtailed in his travel possibilities by an International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrant over his alleged involvement in the abduction of children from Ukraine.
The court has 125 member states, which would be expected to detain the Russian president if he touched down in their countries.
Last year, Mongolia was accused of failing to comply with the arrest warrant against Putin when he visited its capital Ulaanbaatar.
A similar decision was taken by Hungary in April to not detain Israel's prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is the subject of an ICC warrant over the war in Gaza.
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Hungary's prime minister Viktor Orban later said his country does not arrest its visiting friends, and announced he intends to exit the ICC's jurisdiction.
This could pave the way for Budapest to host any meeting between Mr Trump and Putin, but would mean Putin travelling to the European Union − something that would be likely to anger critics of his war in Ukraine.
Mr Orban is considered the Kremlin's closest European ally, while also being a vocal supporter of the US president's MAGA movement, adding to the possibility of him convening the talks.
Reports in Italy had suggested that Mr Trump had reached out to Giorgia Meloni, the country's prime minister, to enquire about hosting the meeting.
Mr Zelensky was also said to be in favour of this as an option, after the Vatican was the scene of the talks where he reconciled relations with Mr Trump.
But Putin was said to have immediately rejected this option because he 'considers Italy a nation too aligned with Ukraine', Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera reported.
Announcing his intention to hold talks with Mr Trump, the Russian president on Thursday touted the UAE as a probable destination.
The UAE, much like Turkey, Qatar and Saudi Arabia, has maintained relations with both the West and Russia, as well as acting as mediators throughout the war in Ukraine.
A source familiar with the situation, however, told The Telegraph that Mr Trump has soured relations with Saudi leaders in a trade spat in recent months.
Turkey also has a tricky relationship with the US, despite playing host to the most recent series of direct talks between Ukraine and Russia.
Meanwhile Azerbaijan and Armenia were due to sign an initial US-brokered peace agreement during a meeting with Mr Trump yesterday, a deal aimed at boosting economic ties between the two countries after decades of conflict, the White House said.
White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly told reporters Mr Trump would sign separate deals with both Armenia and Azerbaijan on energy, technology, economic cooperation, border security, infrastructure and trade. No further details were provided.
Mr Trump was expected to meet separately with Azerbaijani president Ilham Aliyev and Armenian prime minister Nikol Pashinyan at the White House yesterday afternoon, according to a White House spokesperson.
The agreement includes exclusive US development rights to a strategic transit corridor through the South Caucasus, dubbed the 'Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity'.
US officials said the agreement between the countries was hammered out during repeated visits to the region and would provide a basis for working towards a full normalisation between Armenia and Azerbaijan.