The proposed meeting between the two leaders in Budapest has been reportedly pushed to an unspecified later date | Preparations for the proposed Russia-US summit expected to be held in Budapest, Hungary, have been put “on hold,” American media outlets reported on Tuesday, citing anonymous officials. ● There are no plans for US President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin to meet “in the immediate future,” Reuters has reported, citing a senior White House staffer. ● Likewise, White House correspondent Garrett Haake reported that planning for the summit in Budapest is now “on hold,” also citing an unnamed senior official who also explained why the planned meeting between Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio was scrapped. [...] The anonymously sourced reports follows a CNN story, also citing unnamed sources, that claimed preparations for the summit “had been tabled, at least for now.” The CNN reporting prompted a reaction from senior Russian officials, who rejected the assertions made in the piece.

■ Trump Says Will Be Notifying About Meeting With Putin Within Next Two Days (Sputnik) [Oh...the arrogance!]
■ Summit with Putin should not be ‘wasted time’ – Trump (RT)
■ Rubio, Lavrov Had Productive Call, In-person Meeting Not Needed - US Official (Sputnik)
■ Trump Urged Zelensky To Accept Russia’s Terms for a Peace Deal (antiwar,com)

✅ Russia REJECTS Trump Suggestion to Stop War Where it is and Go Home (Harold Turner) [...] "The termination of the conflict along the current line of contact is impossible primarily because referendums were held in the DPR, LPR, Zaporozhye and Kherson regions in 2022, according to which all four regions expressed a desire to become part of Russia." "Accordingly, all four historical regions should be part of Russia in the form in which they were at the time of the referendums. Such conditions comply with both Russian laws and international standards. Now these borders do not coincide with the line of contact. Therefore, Trump's demand to divide the territories is unacceptable to Moscow."

A tunnel connecting Russia and the US under the Bering Strait could change Northern Hemisphere geopolitics forever, leaving Europe even more isolated, Stanislav Mitrakhovich, a leading expert of the National Energy Security Foundation and the Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation, said. | Russia and the US — acting as rational players — are exploring avenues for dialogue and a constructive agenda to replace the current confrontational dynamic, and the proposed 112.5 km Chukotka–Alaska tunnel, if realized, could feed into that, Stanislav Mitrakhovich told Sputnik. ● Extending a railway from Eurasia through Russia to North America would likely deepen political and economic ties among Russia, the United States, and China, the pundit speculated. ● Such a connection could boost trade, foster regional development, and enhance mutual cooperation, potentially reducing the risk of economic disputes and military-political tensions between these nations. ● European countries that have strongly opposed closer US-Russia ties, would find themselves sidelined, and might be expected to put up all manner of roadblocks, including potential provocations or sabotage, reminiscent of the Nord Stream pipeline explosions, he remarks.

✅ The Bering Strait Tunnel Will Likely Remain A Pipe Dream (Andrew Korybko)