Lavrov Blames 'Behind-the-Scenes Reports' for Budapest Summit Delay

Overview

• In a ministry-published article, Sergey Lavrov said President Donald Trump postponed the planned Russia–US summit in Budapest because of behind-the-scenes reports.
• The Russian Foreign Ministry released a full transcript of Lavrov’s interview after saying Corriere della Sera refused to run his answers without edits.
• Lavrov reiterated that Moscow remains ready for a high-level meeting in Hungary only with a carefully worked-out agenda based on prior talks.
• Presidential aide Yuri Ushakov said the Budapest summit remains possible and did not specify potential dates.
• Trump previously announced the meeting’s cancellation, while Vladimir Putin described it as a postponement, and both the Kremlin and the White House have left open a future encounter.