By Brendan Scanland
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Eyes from across the globe are on Anchorage, Alaska, at this hour, waiting for the outcome of the historic, high-stakes summit with President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Just after 3 p.m. Eastern time, the two leaders met face to face on the tarmac of Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson. It was their first in-person encounter since Russia invaded Ukraine roughly three and a half years ago. The meeting was originally planned to be a one-on-one between Trump and Putin, however, shortly before the leaders arrived, White House officials said it would be a “three-on-three meeting.” Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Special Envoy Steve Witkoff joined the President.
While traveling on Air Force One, the president spoke to reporters ahead of what could be one of his loftiest foreign policy goals during his time in office.
“I want to see a ceasefire rapidly. I don’t know if it’s going to be today, but I’m not going to be happy if it’s not today,” Trump said. “We’re going to find out where everybody stands, and I’ll know within the first two minutes, three minutes, four minutes or five minutes — like we tend to find out — whether or not we’re going to have a good meeting or a bad meeting. And if it’s a bad meeting, it’ll end very quickly. And if it’s a good meeting, we’re going to end up getting peace in the pretty near future.”
Depending on Friday’s summit, a second meeting could follow — one that could include Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and other European leaders.
In recent days, however, Zelenskyy has warned that Russia is showing no signs of scaling back.
According to a June study by the Center for Strategic and International Studies, of the estimated 950,000 Russian casualties so far, as many as 250,000 are dead. The same study shows Ukraine has sustained nearly 400,000 casualties, including an estimated 60,000 to 100,000 deaths.
Some experts believe the only way for true, permanent peace in Ukraine is to do something Moscow has long opposed.
“I believe what’s necessary is for some type of NATO or EU guarantee,” said Professor Gregory W. Slayton, author and former senior U.S. Diplomat. “I don’t think Putin’s going to attack NATO, and I’m very confident he would not attack Ukraine if there is a NATO guarantee — and that’s what we need. We need peace not just for three months or six months, but peace for 40 years.”
Russian officials hope Friday’s meeting can salvage economic relations with the U.S., which have deteriorated since the war broke out. Trump reiterated before the meeting that Russia would face severe economic consequences if Putin does not agree to make peace.
