A Trump-Putin summit could take place in July in Vienna

[Tender Branson]

Vladimir Putin Asks Austrian Leader to Set Up Summit With Donald Trump

White House says it is aware of request but hasn’t responded

Russian President Vladimir Putin has asked Austria’s chancellor to organize a meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump in Vienna this summer and the White House is pondering the offer, a senior European official said.

Mr. Putin made the request during an official visit in the Austrian capital on Tuesday, the official said. Chancellor Sebastian Kurz accepted the request and pledged to approach Mr. Trump, the person said.

Mr. Putin’s entreaty suggests a summit between the U.S. and Russian leaders could happen sooner than expected just weeks ago. The Wall Street Journal reported last week that the White House had begun preliminary work on setting up a meeting between the two leaders. Jon Huntsman, the U.S. ambassador to Russia, was in Washington last week meeting with Trump administration officials to help arrange the summit, a senior administration official said.

“The Austrians have conveyed their willingness to host a meeting between President Trump and President Putin,” a U.S. National Security Council official said. “And, although the two leaders have previously discussed the possibility of arranging a meeting, we have nothing to announce at this time.”

Mr. Putin told Mr. Kurz he would be ready to meet Mr. Trump in Vienna during the U.S. president’s planned Europe trip in July, when he is expected to attend a North Atlantic Treaty Organization summit in Brussels and visit the U.K.

In a phone call on March 20, the two leaders talked about a future meeting “at a number of potential venues, including the White House,” White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said at the time.

The capital of Austria, a neutral country outside of NATO that has maintained closer relations with Russia than most other European Union members, has often been the stage for delicate international negotiations.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/vladimir-putin-asks-austrian-leader-to-set-up-summit-with-donald-trump-1528405959

https://www.marketwatch.com/story/putin-asks-austrian-leader-to-organize-summit-with-trump-this-summer-2018-06-07

Good.

[Tender Branson]

July 15 has been mentioned and US and Russian security teams and diplomats are already in Vienna to arrange the meeting:



A decision will come next week. Apparently, the British are still somewhat opposed to the meeting.

CNN is also confirming that preparations are taking place and that Vienna is the most likely to host the summit:

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https://edition.cnn.com/2018/06/21/politics/donald-trump-vladimir-putin-meeting/index.html

[kelestian]

Can't see any  significant agreements being made on this summit. Probably another Trump photo session.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

Can't see any  significant agreements being made on this summit. Probably another Trump photo embarrassment session.

FTFY

There's absolutely nothing Trump can gain from this except please Putin as he contributes to the further breakdown in US-European relations.

Donald, if you're doing this because of blackmail instead of stupidity or arrogance, please remember that he's not going to hand the tapes over to you. (Or if does, he'll still keep copies.)

[kelestian]

Can't see any  significant agreements being made on this summit. Probably another Trump photo embarrassment session.

FTFY

There's absolutely nothing Trump can gain from this except please Putin as he contributes to the further breakdown in US-European relations.

Donald, if you're doing this because of blackmail instead of stupidity or arrogance, please remember that he's not going to hand the tapes over to you. (Or if does, he'll still keep copies.)

Trump want from Putin support against Iran and China. But he can't propose anything in exchange. They can discuss Korea, but Russia plays little role there.

[Storebought]

If this event happens, I expect a warm welcome for Putin in Austria. That country has always had a kindness for Soviet/Russian authoritarians.

[Tender Branson]

Now, it seems Helsinki (FIN) could host the summit.

That would be a major setback for Chancellor Kurz, who badly wanted to host the summit.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

Now, it seems Helsinki (FIN) could host the summit.

That would be a major setback for Chancellor Kurz, who badly wanted to host the summit.

Why?  It certainly wouldn't have gained Kurz anything internationally and just considering all the protesters who would show up, it's going cost a lot to host the meeting of these two.

[Aboa]

Now, it seems Helsinki (FIN) could host the summit.

That would be a major setback for Chancellor Kurz, who badly wanted to host the summit.

Why?  It certainly wouldn't have gained Kurz anything internationally and just considering all the protesters who would show up, it's going cost a lot to host the meeting of these two.

At least in Finland hosting internationally prominent summits and being neutral broker is seen as a foreign policy success and brings positive coverage from domestic media.

[WMS]

Maybe they can have a big red reset button to press together.

[Tender Branson]

Helsinki hosting it is a major defeat for Chancellor Kurz, who worked behind the scenes to bring it to Vienna and for him to get a photo-opportunity.

On the other hand, I'm also happy that this torch has passed us, because of all the protests and because of all the traffic chaos.

[NewYorkExpress]

For Americans, any Trump-Putin is literally treason, given what we already know about the 2016 campaign.

[TheSaint250]

For Americans, any Trump-Putin is literally treason, given what we already know about the 2016 campaign.

No, a summit between two world leaders is not "literally treason," regardless of what happened on the campaign. If they were talking about treasonous acts at said summit, then sure, but a summit itself is not "treason."