Slop Check: Did Putin Really Torpedo the Budapest Peace Summit?
‘This does not exactly gel with the idea that Trump is some Putin sycophant, does it?’
‘This does not exactly gel with the idea that Trump is some Putin sycophant, does it?’
The planned Trump–Putin summit in Budapest has exposed how modern diplomacy is waged through information warfare. Leaks, denials, and anonymous sources have flooded the media, as Brussels and Kyiv intensify efforts to block the meeting—fearing that a deal might emerge outside their control.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signalled his willingness to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump in Budapest, saying he is ‘ready’ to join the summit if it aims for a just and lasting peace. ‘We need both sides of this tragedy,’ he said.
US President Donald Trump has explained why Budapest was chosen as the venue for his upcoming peace talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, praising Hungary as strong, stable, and safe. Trump said that both he and Putin ‘like Viktor’, describing him as ‘a very good host’.
Budapest may soon join the ranks of historic diplomatic cities as US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin plan to meet there for peace talks on Ukraine. Analyst Anton Bendarjevskiy says the summit could become Hungary’s most significant foreign policy milestone in decades.
Hungary’s capital will host the next Trump–Putin summit on Ukraine, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán confirmed on Thursday. The talks aim to revive negotiations stalled since August and come just as Zelenskyy pushes Washington for long-range Tomahawk missiles to strike deep inside Russia.
Russian President Vladimir Putin praised Viktor Orbán as a leader defending national interests in Europe, declaring that if such forces grow stronger, ‘Europe will be reborn.’ Speaking at the Valdai Club in Sochi, he also attacked the EU’s migration policies, while boasting that Russian forces hold the strategic initiative in Ukraine.
Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó and Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico have travelled to Beijing to attend China’s 3 September World War II victory parade, where they will be the only EU representatives alongside leaders such as Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Un. Szijjártó stressed Hungary’s interest in ‘civilized East–West cooperation’ and in deepening Chinese investment ties.
Bryan Leib, Senior Fellow at the Center for Fundamental Rights, has recently posted to X, advocating that the proposed trilateral meeting between US President Donald Trump, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine, and President Putin of Russia should take place in Budapest, Hungary.
Péter Szijjártó said on Thursday that Hungary is ready to host potential Putin–Zelenskyy talks to end the war in Ukraine. With Trump’s administration eyeing Budapest as a possible location, the city has emerged as a strong contender—but also a divisive one, drawing a sharp rebuke from Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, who warned against repeating past failures.