The belief that this time the Vladimir Putin He will not “play” with him, expressed in new statements by the Donald Trump. The eyes of the whole world are on Alaska, where on Friday night (15.08.2025) the 2 leaders will talk about the war in Ukraine.
Donald Trump’s goal, he claimed, is in the conversation soon to involve Volodimir Zelenski. From the day it became known that Donald Trump will meet with Vladimir Putin in Alaska (22:00 Greek time), European leaders (and apparently Kiev) point out that the war in Ukraine cannot come if Ukraine does not participate in talks.
A few hours before the critical meeting, Ukraine is facing ever -increasing military pressure. On Thursday, authorities ordered new evacuations of areas in the eastern Donetsk region, where the advance of the Moscow troops has continued rapidly in recent days.
“If I were not president, Putin would like to understand the whole Ukraine. But I am president and he is not going to play with me, “Donald Trump told reporters at the White House.
For Daniel Fried, a former US ambassador to Poland and a current analyst of the Atlantic Council Study Center, the danger that lies on Friday is to develop the meeting into a “missed opportunity” if Vladimir Putin just saves time.
“I will know in the first two, three, four or five minutes” whether or not the meeting will be constructive or not Donald Trump, who considers himself a favorite for the Nobel Peace Prize.
“This meeting will pave the way for another,” with the participation of Ukrainian president, said earlier in an interview with Fox News Radio.
Kiev and Europeans are afraid that Trump and Putin, taking advantage of Volodimir Zelenski’s absence, may begin to start They redesign the map of Ukraine.
“I do not want to use the term ‘sharing’ but, in a sense, it is not a bad term,” said the US president, who has said it would be required soil concessions in order to reach an agreement to end the war in Ukraine.
The US president also expressed the desire for a future trilateral summit, possibly in Alaska.
For his part, Vladimir Putin praised the “tangible and sincere” US efforts to “end hostilities, resolve the crisis and reaching agreements that will satisfy all parties”.
The Ukrainian president was not invited to this meeting of the leaders whose relationship is on the razor cut and is sometimes characterized by tension and sometimes by spectacular reunion.
Volodimir Zelenski visited Thursday the Londonwhere he was received by the British Prime Minister, Star star. European leaders have joined his side, trying to influence the US president.
The Donald Trump’s Tet-A-Tet with Vladimir Putin will take place at the Eldorf-Richardson Air Base in Alaskain the presence of their interpreters, and the talks will focus on the “settlement of the Ukrainian crisis” as well as bilateral issues, Kremlin’s adviser on foreign policy Yuri Usakov said.
There will be a working lunch with the delegations of the two countries.
The US and Russia presidents will give a joint press conference in the first after 2018 in Helsinki.
In the battlefield in Ukraine, Ukrainian troops are trying to stop the rapid advance of invaders in the Donetsk region, where Moscow announced the occupation of two other communities on Thursday.
Moscow claims by Kiev 4 Ukrainian regions which Russian troops are partially controlled (Donetsk, Luhank, Zaporizia and Peninson), in addition to Crimea, which Russia annexed in 2014 to stop weapons supplies from the West and abandon the ambitions for Ukraine integration into NATO.
The Ukrainian government has categorically rejected these claims as “unacceptable”.
After 3 rounds of talks in recent months, with the last July in Istanbul, Russians and Ukrainians managed to agree only on the exchange of prisoners of war.
“Trump can now take an important step towards peace”
Vladimir Putin “today has the opportunity to accept a ceasefire” in Ukraine, he underlined German Chancellor Friedrich Mertz.
Germany’s leader stressed that he expects Russia’s president “to start unconditionally negotiations” following his meeting with US President Donald Trump today in Alaska.
“The goal must be (organizing) a summit that also participates by President (of Ukraine Volodimir) Zelenski, in which a ceasefire should be agreed,” Mertz also said in a statement.
The German Chancellor also emphasized that “President Trump can now take a significant step towards peace”.