Trump and Putin set to meet over Ukraine war: When and where it’s happening

If completed as planned, this will be Putin’s eighth trip to the US during his presidency, which spans more than two decades over two separate terms since 1999.

By: Express Web Desk
Updated: August 15, 2025 01:13 PM IST

3 min read

Trump has described the meeting as “setting the table” for a potential follow-up involving Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. (AP Photo)

US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin are set to meet soon in Anchorage, Alaska, for a closely watched summit, expected to focus on the war in Ukraine. Putin’s trip marks the first visit by an elected Russian leader to Alaska, a territory that the United States purchased from Moscow in 1867 for $7.2 million.

If completed as planned, this will be Putin’s eighth trip to the US during his presidency, which spans more than two decades over two separate terms since 1999.

This comes at a time when Europe perceives an existential threat from Russia and the continent’s ties with the US are being tested, and when Ukraine’s future is at stake. Yet, neither the Europeans nor the Ukrainians will be present at the summit.

The schedule

According to USA Today, the meeting is scheduled to start at 11:30 am Alaska time (3:30 pm ET), which will be midnight in India on August 16.
A joint press conference is expected to follow.
The talks will take place at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, a military installation hosting about 30,000 service members, their families, and civilian employees. The base lies roughly 700 miles from Russia’s border.
Reuters reported that Trump will leave the White House at 6:45 am EDT (4:15 pm IST) on Friday, travel for about six to seven hours aboard Air Force One, and arrive in Anchorage for the summit.
He is scheduled to depart Alaska at 5:45 pm local time (7:15 am IST Saturday).
Story continues below this ad

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told Fox News the program includes a one-on-one session between the two leaders, a “bilateral lunch” with their delegations, and the press conference.

Agenda and stakes

The war in Ukraine, now in its fourth year since Russia’s full-scale invasion, will dominate the discussions. Trump has described the meeting as “setting the table” for a possible follow-up that could include Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

In an August 14 interview on Fox News Radio, Trump likened the talks to a “chess game,” estimating there is a “25 per cent chance” they might fail to advance peace negotiations. He warned there would be “very severe consequences” for Moscow if Putin refuses to end the war.

Trump has floated a “land swap” deal requiring both Russia and Ukraine to cede territory to one another — an idea firmly rejected by Kyiv. “Ukrainians will not gift their land to the occupier,” Zelenskyy declared in an August 9 video posted on X.

(With inputs from USA Today and Reuters)

From the homepage