Fox News White House correspondent Jacqui Heinrich reported in a post on X that the Kremlin favors Hungary, but no decision has been made on the location of the meeting. The post was picked up by The Guardian.
🚨NEWS: TRUMP-PUTIN SUMMIT UPDATE
— Jacqui Heinrich (@JacquiHeinrich) August 8, 2025
- Officials are TENTATIVELY planning for a Trump-Putin summit at the end of next week, according to a source familiar with the planning
- Location is still up in the air. Hungary, Switzerland, Rome, and UAE are in the mix.- Putin’s first…
The political journalist noted that the negotiations could run into administrative problems, as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky insists that any territorial concession must be tied to a referendum in Ukraine.
It has been decided that a meeting between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump will take place soon, Russian news agency IFAX reported, citing Kremlin adviser Yuri Ushakov. The foreign affairs official reportedly said that all parties involved have begun working out the details.
Based on the Russian Lenta, Mandiner previously reported that the meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump could be held in Saudi Arabia, Turkey or Hungary, as the International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrant narrows down the possible locations.
According to the Corriere della Sera, Georgia Meloni also met with Donald Trump and offered Rome as the venue, but Moscow rejected the Italian prime minister's idea, citing that Italy was"too pro-Ukrainian". And it should not be forgotten that the Russian president should in principle be arrested in Rome due to the International Criminal Court's arrest warrant.
The arrest warrant narrows the options
Hungary decided in early April to withdraw from the International Criminal Court, timed to coincide with the arrival of Benjamin Netanyahu. An arrest warrant was issued for the Israeli prime minister in November 2024 for war crimes and crimes against humanity. Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó justified the withdrawal by saying that the ICC had become a political organization and its decisions were “motivated by petty political revenge.”
The International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Vladimir Putin in March 2023. The Russian president is suspected of being personally responsible for the illegal deportation and transfer of Ukrainian children to Russia. Following the ICC decision, the question was also raised on Government Information: Would Vladimir Putin be arrested in Hungary? Gergely Gulyás said at the time that Hungary could enforce the Hungarian legal order, and that the Russian president could not be arrested on this basis because the ICC statute had not been promulgated.
The Minister explained: we stand on a dualistic basis, the adoption of an international agreement does not in itself become part of domestic law, only if it is promulgated, which did not happen because the agreement is contrary to the Hungarian Constitution.
