TRUMP CANCELS PLANNED MEETING WITH PUTIN – Says talks made no progress and timing was not right for the summit.
U.S. President Donald Trump says he has cancelled a planned meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
He told reporters the decision followed stalled negotiations and said the timing “didn’t feel right.” The meeting was expected to address sanctions and global energy stability.
On Wednesday, the U.S. Treasury Department announced sanctions on Russia’s two largest oil producers, Rosneft and Lukoil, in a bid to pressure Moscow to agree to an immediate ceasefire in Ukraine.
State-controlled Rosneft and privately held Lukoil are the two largest Russian oil producers, jointly accounting for nearly half of Russia’s total crude-oil exports, or around 2.2 million barrels a day in the first half of this year, according to Bloomberg estimates.
Trump said the two leaders might meet in the future “when conditions are better.”
