U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Wednesday the cancellation of his planned summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Budapest, Hungary, which had been tentatively scheduled for later this month following their October 16th phone call.
Speaking during an event with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, Trump told reporters, “We cancelled the meeting with President Putin. It just didn’t feel right to me. It didn’t feel like we were going to get to the place we have to get, so I canceled it. But we will do it in the future.” Earlier in the day, Trump elaborated that he did not want “a wasted meeting” and would “see what happens” before setting a new date.
Reports first surfaced on Tuesday in American media suggesting the summit had been called off, though Russian and Hungarian officials initially denied this, saying preparatory work was still underway. However, a phone call on Monday between U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov reportedly ended poorly after Rubio restated Washington’s demand for a ceasefire in Ukraine—an approach Trump had previously backed away from following his August summit with Putin in Alaska.
On Wednesday, Trump’s administration also imposed sweeping sanctions on Russia, targeting state oil giants Rosneft and Lukoil along with dozens of subsidiaries, marking the first such measures against Moscow since Trump took office. Trump confirmed the timing, saying he “just felt it was time.”
The move further heightened tensions after reports surfaced that Trump had lifted restrictions on Ukraine’s use of long-range missiles to strike inside Russia. Trump denied this in a Truth Social post but added that “what Ukraine does with them” would not concern Washington—leaving ambiguity over U.S. involvement in potential future operations.
Wednesday’s developments may mark a turning point in a nine-month diplomatic saga characterized by sharp reversals, threats, and shifting rhetoric from the White House. Trump’s latest moves signal a possible return to the pre-Trump policy line—continued U.S. support for Ukraine coupled with a hardening stance toward Moscow and the suspension of direct dialogue.pi