Trump Putin Meeting Highlights: Lunch between the US & Russian delegations has been canceled; Trump is returning to Washington

“Our talks were held in a constructive and mutually respectful atmosphere,” Russian President Vladimir Putin said after meeting Donald Trump in Alaska, adding that he greeted Trump “as a neighbor” and had established “very good direct contacts” with him.

Putin said the Ukraine conflict was one of the central topics, stressing that Russia has “always regarded, and still regards, the Ukrainian people as a brotherly people.” He added, “All the root causes of the crisis must be eliminated. Ukraine’s security must, of course, be ensured, and we are ready to work on this.”

US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin are addressing a news conference following their high-stakes talks in Alaska.

Russian state media quoted Ambassador to the US Alexander Darchiev as saying the atmosphere around the discussions was generally positive.

It has been seven years since Russian President Vladimir Putin stood alongside an American president to take questions. The last time was in Helsinki in 2018, during the now-infamous press conference where Donald Trump appeared to side with Russia over US intelligence agencies on election interference.

When Joe Biden met Putin in Geneva in 2021, he chose not to hold a joint press conference, instead taking questions alone, a move aimed, in part, at denying Putin a platform to shape the narrative of their talks.

Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin concluded their three-on-three meeting after roughly two and a half hours. The two leaders met behind closed doors, joined by their top advisers.

Speaking to Fox News anchor Bret Baier aboard Air Force One on his way to Alaska, US President Donald Trump said he wants to walk away from his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin with a ceasefire in hand, and won’t be satisfied without it.

“I wouldn’t be thrilled if I didn’t get it,” Trump said, adding that some believe a halt to hostilities in Ukraine may only come after a second meeting. “We’ll see what happens. I won’t be happy if I walk away without some form of a ceasefire.”

Putin, meanwhile, gave no indication of his position. When reporters at the airport shouted questions, including whether he would “stop killing civilians,” the Russian leader smirked and gestured as if he could not hear.

US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin have begun their bilateral meeting in Anchorage, Alaska.

The two leaders were seated with their aides in front of a blue backdrop reading “Pursuing Peace.” Positioned in the center of a horseshoe arrangement of chairs, they faced each other across a small table holding drinking glasses and papers.

Reporters were briefly allowed in the room, but no questions were taken. Trump simply said, “Thank you,” before the press was escorted out.

US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin climbed into the backseat of Trump’s armored presidential limousine, known as “The Beast,” smiling and chatting as they settled in for the ride together.

President Donald Trump welcomed Russian President Vladimir Putin to Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Alaska on Friday under the shadow of America’s Cold War legacy.

As the two leaders shook hands on the red carpet, F-22 fighters and B-2 stealth bombers flew overhead, aircraft designed during the 1970s and 1980s for a potential US-Soviet conflict, though they entered service only after the Cold War ended.

Their presence during the welcome may have been a pointed reminder of US military power as Trump and Putin prepared to begin talks on Russia’s war in Ukraine.

US President Donald Trump welcomed Russian President Vladimir Putin at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska, where the two leaders shook hands before their summit.

As they stood on the tarmac, a B-2 bomber flew overhead. Both ignored shouted questions from reporters. When asked if he would stop killing civilians, Putin smirked and pointed to his ear.

(From AP and CNN)

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Russian state news agency RIA Novosti that Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and presidential foreign affairs adviser Yuri Ushakov will accompany Vladimir Putin in his “three-on-three” meeting with US President Donald Trump, Senator Marco Rubio, and Steve Witkoff.

Lavrov and Ushakov also took part in the first in-person Russia-US talks held in February this year.

(From AP)

As US President Donald Trump arrived in Alaska for talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky released a video statement noting that Russian attacks were continuing across Ukraine.

“On the day of negotiations, the Russians are killing as well,” Zelensky said. “And that speaks volumes.”

While President Donald Trump says his Alaska summit with Vladimir Putin will focus on ending the war in Ukraine before exploring any new business ties, senior administration officials privately acknowledge they are considering incentives to get Moscow to the table, sources told CNN.

Two US officials said the options, described as ‘carrots,’ could include opening discussions on future business deals with Russia or even a potential strategic arms agreement. Russian officials have recently raised both ideas in conversations with Washington.

“There is certainly a willingness to discuss parameters,” one senior official said when asked if Trump might talk to Putin about a possible arms control deal. However, the official added that details of any nuclear agreement are unlikely to be hammered out at such a high level.

The US has coordinated closely with European allies ahead of the summit, but some in the administration believe Europe remains unwilling to explore incentives for Moscow. “The Europeans have not thought about carrots for years,” one official said. Another was blunter: “It is childish and impractical” to reject discussions that might be seen as rewarding Russia for its 2022 invasion.

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Press secretary Karoline Leavitt said aboard Air Force One that President Donald Trump’s meeting with Vladimir Putin will no longer be one-on-one, as previously planned.

Instead, it will be a three-on-three session, with Trump joined by the secretary of state and his special envoy.

A separate lunch meeting will include Senators Marco Rubio and Steve Witkoff, along with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, and White House chief of staff Susie Wiles.

Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, President Donald Trump noted that the Russian delegation to the Alaska summit includes business figures.

He suggested Russia’s recent strikes on Ukraine could be a sign that President Vladimir Putin is “trying to negotiate,” but warned that any failure to move toward peace would bring “economically severe” consequences for Moscow.

US President Donald Trump has arrived at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Alaska for his high-stakes summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin on the war in Ukraine.

An “Alaska 2025” sign and a red carpet awaited him on the tarmac, flanked on both sides by fighter jets parked at an angle.

The first Trump-Putin meeting of Trump’s second term, and their seventh overall, starts in just over an hour at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson. Here’s where things stand:

Trump’s goal: Secure a trilateral summit with Putin and Zelensky “almost immediately.”

Ceasefire push: Wants a rapid ceasefire, ideally today, but says he’ll “walk real fast” if talks go badly.

Not negotiating for Ukraine: Says his role is to get Putin to the table, not make territorial deals without Kyiv present.

Warning to Moscow: Pledged “severe” economic consequences if Russia shows no willingness to end the war.

Zelensky’s stance: Ukraine “counting on America,” rejects any ceasefire that cedes territory.

Post-summit calls: Trump will brief Zelensky first, then European leaders.

Belarus angle: Spoke with ally Alexander Lukashenko, thanked him for freeing 16 prisoners, with 1,300 more under discussion.

Inside the venue for the Trump-Putin joint news conference, two podiums are already in place.

Vladimir Putin has landed in Anchorage, Alaska, ahead of his high-stakes meeting with US President Donald Trump.

The talks are set to begin at 12:30 AM IST.

Speaking aboard Air Force One en route to Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Alaska, President Donald Trump said Russia will be barred from striking new business deals with the United States while the war in Ukraine continues.

“They are not doing business until we get the war settled,” Trump told reporters. Suggesting the stance could give him leverage in his talks with Vladimir Putin later today, he added, “He wants a piece of that because he’s not doing well economically.”

(From New York Times)

The University of Alaska Anchorage will host hundreds of Russian delegates in town for the summit between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Vice Chancellor Ryan Buchholdt told the Anchorage Daily News that up to 750 people from the US and Russian delegations may stay in student dormitories.

The campus can accommodate about 12,000 people. The arrivals coincide with the start of the academic year as students return from summer break.

Anchorage is under heavy lockdown as US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin prepare to meet within hours, CNN reports.

The US Secret Service is leading the summit’s security, working with Putin’s protective detail. Federal agents and military teams have been flown in, and a US Boeing E-3C surveillance aircraft was spotted taking off this morning to scan for airborne threats.

While both sides are cooperating on physical safety, intelligence officials say there is “zero trust” between services. Putin’s team is expected to use disposable “burner” phones and laptops to avoid US surveillance.

A former KGB officer, Putin “doesn’t need coaching” on avoiding compromise, a source told CNN.

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s official aircraft is minutes away from touching down in Anchorage, Alaska, as he arrives for high-stakes talks with US President Donald Trump.

US President Donald Trump says he’s ready to walk away if his Alaska summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin takes a turn for the worse.

“I think it’s going to work out very well, and if it doesn’t, I’m going to head back home real fast,” Trump told Fox News in a preview clip. When anchor Bret Baier asked if that meant walking out, Trump replied, “I would walk, yeah.”

The comments echo what Trump told Fox Radio a day earlier: “If it’s a bad meeting, I’m not calling anybody, I’m going home. But if it’s a good meeting, I’m going to call President Zelensky and the European leaders.”

Three US watchdog agencies say the Trump administration’s move to cancel independent oversight of aid to Ukraine is a recipe for waste, fraud and abuse.

In a report to Congress, the inspectors general for the State Department, Pentagon and USAID said third-party monitors, essential for tracking how billions are spent, have been axed as part of President Trump’s dismantling of USAID. The agency, America’s main civilian aid arm for 60 years, will shut down on September 2 after Trump froze all foreign assistance in January under his “America First” policy.

Billionaire Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency oversaw the termination of 83 percent of USAID programs, including those tied to Ukraine. Between April and June, 25 Ukraine aid projects were shut down, 29 were transferred to the State Department, and critical monitoring contracts were scrapped.

Without independent tracking, USAID admits it can’t verify if funds are being used as intended, a serious risk in conflict zones where diversion is more likely. The agency has handled $30.2 billion in direct budget support for Kyiv and guaranteed a $20 billion loan. Watchdogs say the oversight gap could cost dearly.

(Reuters)

From marathon talks to blink-and-you’ll-miss-it encounters, Donald Trump’s first term offered plenty of headline moments with Vladimir Putin. Here’s the fast-track recap.

July 2017 – G-20 Hamburg: Their first handshake came under the cloud of 2016 election meddling allegations. Trump asked twice if Russia interfered; Putin denied both times. The “35-minute” meeting ran for over two hours, covering Syria, North Korea, and cybersecurity, plus an unannounced dinner chat later that night.

Nov 2017 – APEC Vietnam: No formal sit-down, just a quick handshake and a smile during the group photo. Drive-by diplomacy at its finest.

July 2018 – Helsinki Summit: Two hours alone with only interpreters, Trump winking twice at Putin. At the press conference, Trump seemed to side with Putin over US intelligence on election interference, later claiming he “misspoke.”

Nov 2018 – G-20 Buenos Aires: With the Mueller probe underway, Trump kept his distance. Brief words, no winks.

June 2019 – G-20 Osaka: A friendlier vibe. Putin called it a “great opportunity.” When asked about meddling, Trump grinned and told him, “Don’t meddle in the election.”

Juggling the clocks for the Trump-Putin summit is enough to make your head spin.

Here’s the math: Moscow is 11 hours ahead of Anchorage. Washington, DC, is 4 hours ahead of Anchorage. Russia has 11 time zones. The US has 4 in the mainland. And between the White House and the Kremlin? Exactly 7 hours’ difference.

So when President Donald Trump sits down with Vladimir Putin in Anchorage a little after 11 a.m. local time, it’ll be 3 p.m. in Washington, and 10 p.m. in Moscow, just in time for the Russian president’s late-night diplomacy session.

For the teams scrambling to pull this summit together on short notice, the time zone puzzle was a high-stakes negotiation of its own.

Trump Putin Meeting Live: ‘I’d back Trump for Nobel Peace Prize, if Ukraine deal doesn’t concede to Putin’

Hillary Clinton says she would nominate President Donald Trump for a Nobel Peace Prize if he successfully brokers a peace agreement between Russia and Ukraine, provided the deal does not “capitulate” to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Clinton made the remark on the Raging Moderates podcast, framing it as an incentive for Trump to resist Moscow’s demands during ongoing negotiations.

The upcoming summit between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin is expected to be a marathon session, lasting no less than six to seven hours, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told Russian state television.

When President Donald Trump left Washington for Alaska this morning with his top aides, one notable figure was missing from the delegation, his special envoy for Ukraine, Keith Kellogg.

Kellogg, a former general and the Trump administration’s main interlocutor with Kyiv, was left out because Moscow views him as too sympathetic to Ukraine, a senior administration official told CNN. His presence, they said, could have been “counterproductive” in talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Officials stressed Kellogg had already shared his insights from conversations with Ukrainian leaders with both Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Rubio himself is not seen as soft on Moscow, having previously called Putin a war criminal while serving on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Still, the omission has unsettled some European officials. “He had hoped to be there, and he should be there,” one said, calling it a loss to exclude someone with Kellogg’s deep understanding of what Ukraine might consider in a potential deal.

Kellogg is expected to be part of any future trilateral meeting involving the US, Russia, and Ukraine, sources said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s meeting with US President Donald Trump in Alaska on Friday will be his first visit to the United States in 10 years.

Putin last set foot on American soil in September 2015 for the United Nations General Assembly in New York, where he and then-President Barack Obama clashed over Syria and Ukraine. In defiant remarks, Putin defended backing Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad and dismissed Western outrage over Russia’s annexation of Crimea. Obama, in turn, warned against leaving Assad in power and violating Ukraine’s sovereignty. The two leaders later held a tense, private meeting after an awkward handshake, with little sign of progress.

Before that, Putin’s previous US trip in 2007 had been far warmer. President George W. Bush hosted him at the Bush family’s seaside compound in Kennebunkport, Maine, where the two took a high-speed boat ride with former President George H.W. Bush and went fishing — with Putin landing the only catch of the day. That visit aimed to ease tensions over Iran’s nuclear program and US plans for a missile defense system in Europe.

As Moscow and Washington prepared for the Alaska summit, Russian forces continued to press their offensive in eastern Ukraine, seizing two villages in the Donetsk region.

Russia’s Defence Ministry said its troops had taken control of Oleksandrohrad on Saturday, shortly after capturing Yablunivka.

Between August 7 and 13, Russian forces launched 535 drones and missiles at Ukraine. Kyiv’s defences intercepted just under two-thirds, while five of eight missiles fired during the same period breached its air defences.

US President Donald Trump has said his push to end the Ukraine war, including his face-to-face meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska, is driven purely by the goal of saving lives not personal gain.

“I’m not doing this for my health. OK, I don’t need it,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One en route to Anchorage. “I’d like to focus on our country, but I’m doing this to save a lot of lives.”

Trump made it clear that if Putin refuses to work toward peace, Moscow will face punishing economic measures.

“Yes, it will be very severe,” he said when asked about potential new sanctions and other pressure tactics.

Russian President Vladimir Putin is making a final stop in Russia’s Far East before heading to Alaska for his high-profile meeting with US President Donald Trump.

Putin chaired a meeting with local officials in the Magadan region and was scheduled to tour a local industrial plant, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told state media TASS. “The city is important. Putin has been there many times, even when he was prime minister,” Peskov said.

From Moscow, the flight to Magadan takes about eight hours, followed by another four-hour journey to Anchorage, where the summit will take place. Because of the time zones he is crossing, Putin will effectively have “two Fridays” one in Magadan and another in Alaska.

Trump is already en route aboard Air Force One, with his flight expected to take just under seven hours.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called the Trump-Putin summit in Alaska a “high stakes” moment and urged it to pave the way for a future trilateral meeting with Ukraine at the table.

“This meeting should open a real path toward a just peace,” Zelensky said, stressing that Russia must take the necessary steps to end the war. “We are counting on America. We are ready, as always, to work as productively as possible.”

He said Kyiv is awaiting an intelligence report on Russia’s intentions ahead of the talks, while on the battlefield, Ukrainian forces are holding off Russian advances near Pokrovsk and reinforcing Dobropillia in eastern Donetsk.

Zelensky claimed Moscow is suffering “significant losses” as it tries to secure stronger political leverage before the Alaska meeting.

While the war in Ukraine is the central topic in Anchorage, both sides have signalled an interest in discussing economic ties.

Trump has threatened “severe consequences” including secondary sanctions on countries buying Russian oil and gas if Putin doesn’t agree to end the war.

Russia’s delegation includes top economic officials, and Putin is said to be bringing a business contingent to explore possible trade opportunities.

US President Donald Trump signalled he may explore business opportunities with Russia if his Alaska summit with Vladimir Putin makes progress toward ending the war in Ukraine.

Speaking aboard Air Force One, Trump noted Putin is bringing “a lot of business people” to the talks. “They want to do business, but they’re not doing business until we get the war solved,” he said.

Asked again if economics would be on the table, Trump replied, “If we make progress, I would discuss it, because they’d like to get a piece of what I built in terms of the economy.”

Trump said he expects “something” to come out of the meeting, citing “good respect” between him and Putin. Russia’s Finance Minister Anton Siluanov and sovereign wealth fund chief Kirill Dmitriev are among those in Putin’s delegation.

The two leaders will begin with a one-on-one conversation using interpreters, then move to a business lunch with their delegations.

Trump’s 16-member entourage includes Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, and special envoy Steve Witkoff, the last US official to meet Putin before the summit.

Russia’s five-member team features foreign policy aide Yury Ushakov, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, Defence Minister Andrey Belousov, Finance Minister Anton Siluanov, and sovereign wealth fund chief Kirill Dmitriev.

The inclusion of economic heavyweights on both sides hints that talks could go beyond Ukraine, touching on trade, tariffs, and sanctions.

Donald Trump says he’ll gauge in minutes whether Vladimir Putin is serious about ending the war in Ukraine.

Speaking ahead of the Alaska summit, Trump told reporters he might leave saying “good luck” if the meeting goes badly. If it goes well, he predicts “peace in the pretty near future.”

Trump has repeatedly claimed the war “should have never happened” and would not have started if he had been in office in 2022.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will not be in the room when Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin sit down in Anchorage, but his country’s future will dominate the conversation.

Trump says he will brief Zelensky and European leaders after the meeting, which he described as a “first step” toward ending the war. He believes Putin “wants to make a deal,” but acknowledges sticking points remain, particularly Ukraine’s refusal to cede the Donbas region.

Zelensky has warned against “land swapping” with Russia, saying it would embolden Putin to launch a “third war” in Ukraine.

US President Donald Trump has departed Joint Base Andrews for Anchorage, where he will meet Russian President Vladimir Putin in one of the most closely watched diplomatic encounters of his presidency.

The meeting the first time a US president has invited the Russian leader to private talks on American soil since 2007 is slated for 3 p.m. ET at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, with Trump scheduled to fly back to Washington at 9:45 p.m. ET.

At the top of the agenda: Russia’s war in Ukraine. Officials say the leaders may hold a joint news conference after their talks, though Trump hinted it would depend on “how the meeting ends.”

Russian forces have breached Ukrainian defensive lines in a series of infiltrations across the industrial heartland of Donetsk ahead of the Trump-Putin meet in Alaska.

Analysts say the advances, while significant, represent only limited success for Russia, as its troops must still consolidate these gains before achieving a decisive breakthrough.

Russian President Vladimir Putin may use the situation to his advantage during talks with US President Donald Trump, argued Mykola Bieleskov, senior analyst at the CBA Initiatives Centre. According to Bieleskov, Putin will likely seek to convince Trump to pressure Kyiv by portraying the 3½-year war as going badly for Ukraine.

The call to Beau Disbrow was unlike any the Anchorage realtor had ever received. His short-term rentals typically house tourists bound for glaciers, or business travelers passing through. This time, the request came from the US Secret Service.

“Most of my short-term rentals were booked, but I did manage to put some of them into one home,” he said.

It was not the last inquiry connected to the highly anticipated summit between President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin set for Friday. Soon after the Secret Service call, the Russian consulate in New York phoned Disbrow with the same request. With no vacancies left, he referred the officials to a friend with furnished homes sitting empty. Read more

When Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin meet in Alaska today (August 15), it will be their first face-to-face since the infamous 2018 summit in Helsinki -- a meeting where Trump publicly sided with Putin over US intelligence agencies on Russian election interference.

This time, the backdrop is even more charged: a grinding war in Ukraine, a sanctions-strangled Russian economy, and US tariffs that have hit India hard over its energy trade with Moscow. Read more

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said on Friday that no formal document is expected to be signed following the upcoming Alaska summit between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump.

Peskov said that the meeting had been arranged on short notice, making its outcome difficult to predict. He said the leaders are set to discuss “the most difficult issues,” and while no formal agreements are anticipated, the talks could pave the way for mutual understandings and a framework for future cooperation.