What To Expect From Trump-Putin Alaska Summit: Goals, Stakes, And Possible Outcomes

 

When US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin meet in Alaska on Friday, it will be their first face-to-face encounter since Trump’s return to the White House and their first meeting in more than seven years. It also marks one of the most significant moments in US–Russia relations since the war in Ukraine began in 2022.

The summit was finalised in barely a week, a sharp departure from Washington’s policy of isolating Putin after the invasion that has killed hundreds of thousands and devastated both countries. For the Kremlin, the very fact of the meeting is already a diplomatic win; for Trump, it is an opportunity to see if his self-proclaimed deal-making skills can yield even the beginnings of a ceasefire.