Former U.S. President Donald Trump arrived in Alaska on Friday for a critical summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin, focusing on a potential ceasefire in the ongoing Ukraine conflict, now in its third year and the deadliest European war since World War II.
The meeting, held at a Cold War-era airbase in Anchorage, marks the first U.S.-Russia presidential summit since 2021.
Trump, who has described the war as a “bloodbath” with escalatory risks, aims to broker a truce to strengthen his reputation as a global peacemaker.
Putin, meanwhile, seeks to leverage the talks to reassert Russia’s diplomatic influence after years of Western isolation.
The summit follows extensive preparatory talks, including five visits to Russia by U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff, with the most recent lasting three hours and centering on Ukraine.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, already in Anchorage, emphasized Moscow’s “clear and well-defined” stance but did not predict outcomes.
Russia insists on strict conditions for a sustainable settlement, including Ukraine’s permanent exclusion from NATO, demilitarization, and recognition of Russian control over Crimea, Donetsk, Lugansk, Kherson, and Zaporozhye, regions incorporated via referendums in 2014 and 2022.
Trump has suggested territorial swaps as a possible solution, a proposal Russia has firmly rejected, maintaining control over additional Ukrainian regions like parts of Kharkov.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, excluded from the summit, expressed skepticism, stressing the need for a “just peace” and inclusion in future three-way talks.
Ukrainians in Kyiv, such as 65-year-old Tetiana Harkavenko, voiced distrust, stating, “Nothing good will happen there, because war is war, it will not end.”
Trump, acknowledging the conflict’s complexity, emphasized his role is to facilitate negotiations, not dictate terms for Ukraine.
A source familiar with Kremlin thinking suggested Moscow might consider a compromise, such as an air war truce, due to economic vulnerabilities and U.S. sanction threats.
Both leaders also discussed a potential new nuclear arms control agreement, as the existing one nears its February expiration.putin