“The exact date has not been set. Thorough preparation is required, and that takes time,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Thursday, referring to ongoing arrangements for a potential meeting between President Vladimir Putin and Trump.
Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov also confirmed that work toward organizing the summit is continuing.
“I don’t see any significant obstacles,” Ryabkov told the TASS news agency. “It’s a difficult process, but that’s exactly what diplomacy is about.”
Trump said last week that he had spoken by phone with Putin and announced plans for the two leaders to meet in Budapest, Hungary, “within the next two weeks,” aiming to advance a potential peace deal over the war in Ukraine.
However, the White House said on October 21 that Trump currently has no plans to meet Putin “in the near future.” Trump later added that he did not want a “pointless meeting” with the Russian president.
“There is a lot of speculation and misinterpretation surrounding the entire process. Most of it is simply untrue. There is no new information at this point,” Peskov said.
When asked to comment on Trump’s remarks, Peskov replied:
“No one wants to waste time — neither President Trump nor President Putin.”