WASHINGTON ‒ President Donald Trump said he plans to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Budapest to work on an agreement to end Russia's war in Ukraine.

Trump announced plans for the meeting in an Oct. 16 post on Truth Social after speaking with Putin by telephone earlier in the day.

Trump told reporters his meeting with Putin will take place in the next two weeks. He’s also expected to visit South Korea at the end of October for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum.

An earlier face-to-face meeting in August between Trump and Putin in Alaska failed to advance peace negotiations as Trump hoped.

Trump's call with Putin, which Trump described as "very productive," came on the eve of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's Oct. 17 visit to the White House to meet with Trump as the United States weighs supplying Ukraine with long-range Tomahawk missiles.

Trump said he and Putin agreed to hold an initial meeting between U.S. and Russian officials, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio leading the discussions for the administration. "President Putin and I will then meet in an agreed upon location, Budapest, Hungary, to see if we can bring this 'inglorious' War, between Russia and Ukraine, to an end," he said.

Trump said they talked "a great deal" during the call about future trade between the U.S. and Russia once the war is over. He said Putin also thanked Melania Trump for her work with children after the first lady recently announced the Russian government agreed to return Ukrainian children who were taken to Russia as minors and have since turned 18 years old.

"I believe great progress was made with today’s telephone conversation," Trump said.

Trump says Middle East deal will help end Russia-Ukraine war

The president's renewed focus on ending Russia's war in Ukraine follows Trump's visit this week to the Middle East, where he celebrated a ceasefire deal that ended fighting between Israel and Hamas and secured the release of the remaining Israeli hostages from Gaza.

"President Putin congratulated me and the United States on the Great Accomplishment of Peace in the Middle East, something that, he said, has been dreamed of for centuries," Trump wrote. "I actually believe that the Success in the Middle East will help in our negotiation in attaining an end to the War with Russia/Ukraine."

Trump told reporters on Oct. 12 that he is considering sending long-range Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine in an escalation of U.S. military support.

"I might have to speak to Russia about Tomahawks. Do they want Tomahawks going in their direction? I don't think so," Trump said. "I think I might speak to Russia about that, in all fairness. I told that to President Zelenskyy. Because Tomahawks are a new step of aggression."

"I might say, 'Look, if this war isn't going to get settled, I might send them Tomahawks," Trump added.

Trump, who vowed he could end the Russia-Ukraine war 24 hours into his presidency, now acknowledges the three and a half-year war has become the most difficult international conflict of his presidency.

Trump's Oct. 17 meeting with Zelenskyy will be their first in-person meeting since Zelenskyy visited Trump days in August days after Trump's summit with Putin in Alaska. Zelenskyy was joined by several European leaders, who presented a united diplomatic front after a heated meeting between Trump and Zelenskyy in February.

This story has been updated to add new information.

Reach Joey Garrison on X @joeygarrison.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump, Putin agree to meet in Budapest to seek an end to 'inglorious' Russia-Ukraine war

Reporting by Joey Garrison, USA TODAY / USA TODAY

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