US President Donald Trump is all set to meet his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, on Friday to discuss a ceasefire deal for Ukraine to help end the deadliest war in Europe since World War II. According to Reuters, Trump has already left for Alaska, where the two are scheduled to meet soon.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was not invited to the talks. However, Trump said that if the scheduled talks go well, they would organise a second three-way summit with Zelensky.
Trump had earlier said he would end the war in Ukraine “within 24 hours”. However, he agreed on Thursday that it had proven a tougher task than he had expected.
Ukraine’s European allies have expressed their scepticism about the Trump-Putin meeting, saying that the US President might sell out Ukraine by recognising the Russian control over one-fifth of Ukraine.
Before boarding Air Force One on Friday, Trump, however, said, “I’m not here to negotiate for Ukraine, I’m here to get them to a table.”
Where are Trump and Putin meeting on Friday?
Both Presidents would be meeting at a Cold War-era air force base in Alaska’s largest city.
Reports suggest that in addition to the ceasefire, Russian special envoy Kirill Dmitriev said the two would also discuss a full spectrum of bilateral relations.
Trump is pressing for a truce in the war, which has been going on for over 3.5 years. For Putin, the meeting can be seen as a win and evidence that years of Western attempts to isolate Russia have not been as successful as they would have wanted.
The two are scheduled to meet around 11 AM (Alaska time) on 15 August. According to Indian time, it will start around 12:30 AM on 16 August. Trump will initially meet Putin on his plane.
