United States President Donald Trump has announced plans for a second summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Budapest, Hungary, to discuss ending the war in Ukraine. The announcement follows a lengthy phone call between the two leaders and comes amid escalated military actions and a shifting US stance on supporting Ukraine.
President Trump revealed the planned summit on social media after a more than two-hour phone call with President Putin, which he described as "very productive" and in which he believed "great progress was made". The meeting in Budapest is expected to follow lower-level talks between US and Russian advisers scheduled for the coming week. This will be the second face-to-face meeting between the two leaders since their summit in Alaska in August 2025, which failed to yield a peace agreement. The announcement came just a day before President Trump is set to host Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the White House, where Trump stated he would brief Zelensky on the discussions with Russia.
This diplomatic maneuver occurs against a backdrop of intensified hostilities. Russia recently launched a massive barrage of over 300 drones and 37 missiles targeting Ukrainian energy infrastructure, causing widespread power outages across eight regions. Ukraine's energy ministry has been forced to implement emergency power cuts across most of the country as it prepares for a "very tough, very difficult winter". Concurrently, Ukraine has ramped up its own attacks, targeting Russian energy infrastructure with a new campaign of strikes on oil refineries and energy-related facilities deep inside Russian territory.
The Trump administration has signaled a notable shift in its strategy toward the war. Following the inconclusive Alaska summit, the US has increased intelligence sharing with Ukraine and approved the sale of long-range missiles, moves intended to pressure Moscow. US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has issued strong warnings, stating that the US and its allies will "impose costs on Russia for its continued aggression" if the war does not end soon. A key point of discussion in the upcoming Zelensky-Trump meeting is Ukraine's request for Tomahawk long-range missiles, which could strike deep into Russian territory. President Trump has indicated he is open to the idea, suggesting it could be a lever to force Russia to negotiate.
The US is simultaneously escalating economic pressure on Russia. President Trump has claimed that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi assured him India would stop buying Russian oil, a significant move given that Russia supplies over one-third of India's crude imports. While India has not formally confirmed this commitment, reports indicate that some Indian refiners are preparing for a gradual reduction in Russian oil imports. The US has already used trade policy to pressure India, doubling tariffs on Indian products to 50% in August.
The path to a peace agreement remains fraught with challenges. The Kremlin has expressed "extreme concern" over the potential provision of Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine, warning it would harm US-Russia relations. Furthermore, while the US seeks to rally international support, the effort to use frozen Russian assets to aid Ukraine is still being discussed among G7 partners. The upcoming high-stakes diplomacy, with the planned Trump-Putin summit and continued US support for Ukraine, will be a critical test of whether the war can be brought to an end.