President Donald Trump will sit down with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in Alaska on Ukraine peace deal.
Discussions between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump may extend up to seven hours, according to the Kremlin. Spokesman Dmitry Peskov has also mentioned that Trump will greet Putin at the foot of the Russian president’s aircraft upon its arrival in Alaska.
Previously, Volodymyr Zelensky expressed that Ukraine is “counting on America” as the US president commenced his trip to Anchorage – notably, the Ukrainian president has not received an invitation. In Alaska, members of the Russian delegation have arrived, including Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov; meanwhile, residents of Kyiv in Ukraine are feeling “sceptical” about the summit; in Magadan, a port city in eastern Russia, Putin has been visiting a fish oil factory and engaging with a children’s hockey team.
Russia initiated its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, resulting in tens of thousands of military casualties on both sides. Donald Trump has described his meeting with Vladimir Putin as having “high stakes” as he began the seven-hour flight from Washington DC to Alaska. He has already assessed the likelihood of failure at around 25%, but it remains uncertain if the Russian president shares that level of optimism, and there are few signs that he is willing to agree to a ceasefire, much less a broader peace agreement.
The Kremlin anticipates that the discussions will last between six to seven hours – a duration not currently reflected in the White House’s schedule. Donald Trump is already contemplating a second meeting – potentially involving Ukraine and some European nations – but today presents a significant challenge before any such developments can occur.
Conversely, Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha has stated that he had a “meaningful” dialogue with UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy regarding the pursuit of a “just and lasting peace for Ukraine” in advance of Trump’s summit with Putin.
The talks have raised fears that Washington and Moscow could strike a deal over Ukraine’s head. Trump says that if Friday’s talks go well, he will hold a second meeting that also includes Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky. European leaders expressed hope after a call with Trump and Zelensky that the U.S. president was sympathetic to Europe’s call for an immediate ceasefire in Ukraine. Still, Trump has asserted that a land swap is inevitable, and reports of what American officials have told Russia is on the table have been widely conflicted.
Whatever the outcome of the talks, analysts and Zelensky have said that hosting Putin on U.S. soil was a “personal victory” for the Russian leader, who has been frozen out of diplomatic discussions with Western leaders since the full-scale invasion. The White House sought to play down the conversation as a “listening exercise” that could fail — but warned of severe consequences for Russia if talks fall through.
