Focus on the BIG picture.
Saturday, Aug 16, 2025
Outside the box.
High-Stakes Trump-Putin Summit on Ukraine Underway in Alaska
U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin meet in Anchorage with senior aides as Russia continues airstrikes amid war in Ukraine.
U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin convened for a summit today at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska, their first face-to-face meeting of 2025.
The summit was originally planned as a private meeting but was revised to include senior officials.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Special Envoy Steve Witkoff joined Trump, accompanied by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Chief of Staff Susie Wiles and CIA Director John Ratcliffe.
On the Russian side, attendees included Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and presidential aide Yuri Ushakov.
This marks the first time that a Russian leader has set foot on U.S. soil since 2015, and the first summit on U.S. military property since 1988.
Trump greeted Putin with a red-carpet reception and invited him into the presidential limousine for a brief private exchange conducted without translators.
The two then proceeded to expanded talks, stepping away from the early format of a one-on-one meeting.
In remarks ahead of the talks, Trump expressed openness to security guarantees for Ukraine—though he said that any decisions on territorial arrangements must be made by Ukraine.
He emphasised that his role was to bring Putin back to the negotiating table, not to negotiate on behalf of Kyiv.
He warned of “very severe” consequences if Putin showed no interest in peace.
He also acknowledged the possibility of economic incentives to encourage Moscow to end the war.
The summit took place as Russian airstrikes continued across eastern and southern Ukraine, including a reported strike on a market in Sumy.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy criticised the summit’s optics, stating that “on the day of negotiations, they are also killing.”
Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov arrived wearing a symbolic Soviet-era sweatshirt, and the summit has drawn criticism due to its absence of Ukrainian and European representation.
However, both European capitals and Zelenskyy had engaged with Trump ahead of the meeting to communicate red lines and security concerns.
This meeting came after an earlier diplomatic engagement in February when U.S. and Russian delegates, including Rubio and Lavrov, met in Riyadh to initiate discussions on the Ukraine war, also without Ukrainian participation.
The Anchorage summit centres on the conflict in Ukraine and broader security discussions.
Talks are expected to continue for several hours, including a bilateral lunch with expanding delegations.
Russia brought business leaders to the summit, and Trump noted that while they expressed interest in doing business, they would not proceed until the war is “settled.”
The summit was originally planned as a private meeting but was revised to include senior officials.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Special Envoy Steve Witkoff joined Trump, accompanied by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Chief of Staff Susie Wiles and CIA Director John Ratcliffe.
On the Russian side, attendees included Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and presidential aide Yuri Ushakov.
This marks the first time that a Russian leader has set foot on U.S. soil since 2015, and the first summit on U.S. military property since 1988.
Trump greeted Putin with a red-carpet reception and invited him into the presidential limousine for a brief private exchange conducted without translators.
The two then proceeded to expanded talks, stepping away from the early format of a one-on-one meeting.
In remarks ahead of the talks, Trump expressed openness to security guarantees for Ukraine—though he said that any decisions on territorial arrangements must be made by Ukraine.
He emphasised that his role was to bring Putin back to the negotiating table, not to negotiate on behalf of Kyiv.
He warned of “very severe” consequences if Putin showed no interest in peace.
He also acknowledged the possibility of economic incentives to encourage Moscow to end the war.
The summit took place as Russian airstrikes continued across eastern and southern Ukraine, including a reported strike on a market in Sumy.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy criticised the summit’s optics, stating that “on the day of negotiations, they are also killing.”
Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov arrived wearing a symbolic Soviet-era sweatshirt, and the summit has drawn criticism due to its absence of Ukrainian and European representation.
However, both European capitals and Zelenskyy had engaged with Trump ahead of the meeting to communicate red lines and security concerns.
This meeting came after an earlier diplomatic engagement in February when U.S. and Russian delegates, including Rubio and Lavrov, met in Riyadh to initiate discussions on the Ukraine war, also without Ukrainian participation.
The Anchorage summit centres on the conflict in Ukraine and broader security discussions.
Talks are expected to continue for several hours, including a bilateral lunch with expanding delegations.
Russia brought business leaders to the summit, and Trump noted that while they expressed interest in doing business, they would not proceed until the war is “settled.”
