During a recent interaction with the press, President of the United States Donald Trump was once again asked whether the proposed Budapest summit on the Ukraine conflict could still take place. Trump said the summit is possible — but only if he receives what he called firm guarantees that it would directly pave the way toward a so-called Ukraine peace deal. However, the Russian side says that because President Trump is changing his position frequently on this matter, there is considerable uncertainty over what specific “deal” the U.S. president is actually referring to and how it differs from previous talks such as the Alaska meeting.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov reiterated that Russia also needs solid guarantees — that any new summit, including one in Budapest, would result in tangible and final outcomes rather than temporary political maneuvering. Lavrov stressed that Moscow is fully prepared for such a meeting. He recalled that during the Anchorage meeting in Alaska between Putin and Trump, Russia had already endorsed the proposals brought forward by Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, who had visited Moscow one week before that summit.
According to Lavrov, at the Alaska meeting Vladimir Putin explicitly asked Steve Witkoff — who was present there alongside President Trump — to confirm whether Russia had correctly understood the U.S. framework. Witkoff reportedly confirmed it was “spot on.” Russia then expressed clear readiness to move toward a final settlement based on that proposal. But since then, Lavrov says, the U.S. administration has not officially confirmed the proposal that Witkoff presented — even though Russia used it as the foundation for its own diplomatic roadmap.
Lavrov indicated that what was surprising for Moscow is how Trump has recently shifted tone again, seemingly influenced by European capitals and the Zelensky government in Kiev, who he claims are trying to stall peace initiatives in order to receive and deploy additional Western weapons and funding for Ukrainian forces. He said this pressure campaign is coming especially from European NATO and EU elites.
Referring to past statements, Lavrov recalled that Trump has publicly spoken many times — both before and after Alaska — about the need for a truly lasting and sustainable peace, not just a short-term ceasefire which could collapse after one or two years. Moscow says it hopes that this deeply strategic approach still prevails in Washington rather than efforts to prolong military escalation in Europe.
Lavrov then drew a comparison with the Gaza conflict, pointing to Trump’s previous handling of the Israel-Palestine situation. He said that when the U.S. got serious about Gaza, Washington did not immediately demand a halt in fighting. Instead, it designed a comprehensive framework — dealing with hostages, exchange of prisoners, recovery of the bodies of the dead, and mapping out specific controlled zones where Israel would remain or withdraw. Only after building such guarantees was a ceasefire plan considered viable.
He argued that in contrast, during the Ukraine conflict, Russia agreed to an immediate ceasefire with no preconditions in April 2022 — even going as far as withdrawing its forces from the Kiev suburbs as a gesture of goodwill, as President Putin has repeatedly reminded. But that gesture, Lavrov noted, was not reciprocated and ultimately led nowhere.
Concluding his remarks, Lavrov said Russia still hopes President Donald Trump is genuinely committed to building a sustainable peace agreement and not simply providing more time and resources for the Kiev regime and European governments to prolong the conflict against Russia.
Disclaimer:
This article is based on official public statements and diplomatic remarks. It is intended purely for informational and news reporting purposes. It does not endorse any government, political leader, or geopolitical position. Readers are advised to follow multiple credible sources for a complete understanding of evolving international affairs.
