Trump cancels Budapest meeting with Putin

Corriere della Sera sees cause for optimism:

“Precisely because the meetings, which were planned as a mere spectacle, have been cancelled. They were cancelled because the Ukrainian 'dossier' has passed from Trump's hands into the far more capable hands of US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who is discussing it with the well-trained Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. This can offer us a glimmer of hope. Meanwhile, Europe and Nato, although exhausted, have maintained a surprising degree of unity. ... And Zelensky is showing an openness that was unthinkable until yesterday and seems to have learned the art of softening the American president's undisguised antipathy towards him and defusing his anger.”

Europe must enforce the ceasefire along the front line, Avvenire demands:

“Now the EU, together with the UK and other countries, must take on the task of forcing Russia to reach an agreement that, while not perfect, is favourable to all parties without abandoning the principles of justice and international law. ... All occupied territories would remain under the control and administration of Moscow, without official recognition. This would be followed by the formation of a mediation group, security guarantees for Kyiv with accession to the EU (but not Nato) and the gradual lifting of sanctions against Russia. Why should Putin accept this less than glorious outcome? Because the increased level of economic pressure, political isolation and military strength in Ukraine would not allow him to continue the conflict for much longer.”

Le Monde also calls on the EU to assume responsibility:

“Will Europe finally seize its moment in this war, which is primarily European and in which Russia is attacking it ever more directly? Exhausted by Russia's relentless strikes, Ukrainians are counting on Europe, but are finding it increasingly hard to conceal their disappointment over its political and military inertia. Torn between the realisation that they must ensure their own defence and the fear of being abandoned by their American protector before they are ready, Europeans are going along with all the latter's whims, however crude they may be.”

The war will continue and potentially escalate, editor-in-chief Jordi Juan concludes in La Vanguardia:

“The cancellation of the meeting is the final proof of the impossibility of reaching even a minimal ceasefire agreement in the Ukraine war. Trump can't embarrass himself again with a repeat of the failed Alaska summit. ... Trump's dreams of reaching an agreement like the one in Egypt have been shattered. ... He seems to have grown weary of the European war and is now turning his attention to Colombia and Venezuela. And meanwhile Russia continues to fray Europe's nerves with its hybrid war. The conflict is not only dragging on, it is well on the way to escalating.”

Europe should also be relieved that the meeting will not take place yet, Der Tagesspiegel writes:

“A sober analysis of the situation forces us to acknowledge that if things go wrong the killing and dying will soon resume, possibly on a larger scale. ... Germany and the other European Nato states are currently unable to defend the alliance's territory on their own. They depend on Ukraine continuing to fight – giving them time to rebuild their neglected defence and deterrence capabilities. As long as Ukraine continues to fight and Putin's troops are tied down, he will find it difficult to open a second front. So it comes as good news that the Trump-Putin summit in Budapest will not take place.”

Neatkarīgā looks at why the prospect of a meeting has collapsed for the time being:

“Putin offered Trump another meeting. ... Trump agreed, but on the condition that the foreign ministers of both countries would not only agree on the agenda in advance, but also on the document on the cessation of hostilities and the terms of the ceasefire, which could then be signed at this meeting. It can already be said with a high degree of probability that reaching a consensus on such a document will not be possible because nothing (apart from Putin's recent phone call to Trump) indicates that Putin would be prepared to deviate from his conditions. ... So it's clear that peace in Ukraine is nothing but a mirage for the time being.”

Trump wants to use the same approach with which he was recently successful, Der Standard surmises:

“He is only calling for a ceasefire along the current front line, he has said. This should be agreed upon first, then everything else can be negotiated later. Because this was the recipe for success in Gaza, where Trump actually secured a ceasefire and the release of hostages by putting pressure on Benjamin Netanyahu and Hamas via the Arab states. Apparently here, too, he wants to exert pressure on an ally, this time not Israel but Ukraine. However, the situation is of a completely different nature because the aggressor Russia is not as weak as Hamas, and there is no one far and wide who could successfully exert pressure on Putin.”

Sooner or later Trump will have to exert real pressure on Putin, writes political scientist Serhiy Taran in a Telegram post picked up by Espreso:

“The longer Trump believes in miraculous meetings with Putin, the sooner 'Biden's war' will become 'Trump's war'. So I don't think this belief will last forever. Every time Trump gets results that contradict his own expectations he will be forced to think about alternatives to soft diplomacy. However, this rethinking process is likely to take longer than we would like.”

Seizing the frozen assets would make the war more expensive for Russia, Aamulehti obseves:

“Of course, this would violate international property law. But Russia's unjustified attack on another country and its attempt to change recognised national borders through war also violate international law. By seizing Russian assets, the EU would show Russia that it is serious about boosting the defence of Ukraine and Europe. The seizure would make the war of aggression almost twice as expensive for Russia, accelerating the collapse of the Russian war economy and bring the war to an end.”