- By Supratik Das
- Fri, 15 Aug 2025 02:29 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
Trump-Putin Meeting In Alaska: Hours before his first face-to-face meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in seven years, US President Donald Trump warned that there is a "25 per cent chance" that the Alaska negotiations would collapse. Although he was optimistic that Putin is finally willing to put an end to the war in Ukraine, Trump emphasised that the actual breakthrough will happen only in a second summit between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyyy and potentially European leaders.
The meeting, set for Friday at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Alaska, marks Putin’s first visit to the United States since launching the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, which has killed tens of thousands and displaced millions. It also comes at a time when European capitals and Kyiv are working to ensure that any deal between Washington and Moscow does not undermine Ukraine’s sovereignty.
Earlier in comments to journalists at the White House, Trump labeled the Alaska summit "the first move in a chess game" and stated he would know "within the first two minutes" if a deal was feasible. "If it's a bad meeting, it's going to end very fast. If it's a good meeting, we're going to have peace in the pretty near future," Trump explained, stating that his main concern was "to save thousands of soldiers a week." "This war would have never occurred if I were president. It's Biden's war, not mine. But I want to know if I can stop the killing," he said.
Europe And Ukraine Fear Territory Loss
Before his trip to Alaska, Putin met with senior officials and security chiefs in Moscow. In televised comments, he thanked what he referred to as Washington's "strong and sincere efforts" to halt hostilities and indicated nuclear arms control would be among the topics. The Kremlin affirmed that economic cooperation, which it said had "gigantic untapped potential," would also feature on the agenda.
Russia now occupies roughly 20 per cent of Ukraine's land. Zelenskyy and European leaders are concerned that an early peace agreement would freeze these advances, rewarding Moscow for its aggression and inviting further expansion across Europe. After a virtual meeting with Trump and Zelenskyy last week, French President Emmanuel Macron explained that Trump seemed open to providing security assurances for Ukraine, but he was against including NATO in them. One European official characterized Trump's position as "a big step forward," but acknowledged the details are not yet certain. Zelenskyy, who publicly disavowed suggestions of surrendering territory to Russia, was not invited to the Alaska summit. He has characterized the summit as a "reward" to Putin. Though, Trump assured not to seal any deal without Ukraine's participation saying, "The second meeting is going to be very, very important because that's going to be a meeting where they make a deal. And I don't want to use the word 'divvy' things up, but it's not a bad term."
'Severe Consequences' Warning To Russia
Trump threatened "very severe consequences" if Putin won't sign on to a ceasefire. Without providing details, he intimated that upcoming sanctions and trade restrictions may be an option. Pressed on whether US-Russian normal trade relations could be resumed, Trump answered, "I do. If Vladimir Putin would go toward business instead of war… it would be very important for both countries."
The Alaska summit, the first Russia–US presidential summit since June 2021, is generally regarded as a possible turning point for the war. Whether it will result in serious peace negotiations or reinforce mistrust depends on the second, multi-party meeting Trump has planned. For now, Trump says he is approaching Friday’s talks with cautious optimism: “I believe now [Putin] is convinced he’s going to make a deal… and we’re going to find out very quickly.”