Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. counterpart Donald Trump kicked off a highly anticipated summit in Alaska aimed at ending the war in Ukraine. The leaders are speaking at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage. After an initial closed-door session with just the two leaders, their translators and top officials, the talks will open up to include meetings between the two delegations and a “working breakfast.” Putin will be joined by Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Kremlin foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov in the “three-by-three“ talks, while Trump will be accompanied by Secretary of State Marco Rubio and special envoy Steve Witkoff. Trump and Putin are expected to deliver a joint press conference Friday evening. Speaking en route to Alaska, Trump said that he would push for a ceasefire and was willing to “head back home real fast” if the meeting goes poorly. “I want to see a ceasefire rapidly,” Trump told reporters on board Air Force One. “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 personally welcomes Putin and shakes his hand on the tarmac in Anchorage. pic.twitter.com/5V2IliFNR9 — The Moscow Times (@MoscowTimes) August 15, 2025

Trump personally greeted Putin and shook his hand on the tarmac at 11:10 local time. The two leaders then exchanged a few words, posed for photos and departed for the summit venue in the same car. The summit marks the first in-person meeting between Putin and a U.S. president since 2021, and the first since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine alienated him from the West. Leading up to the talks, there appeared to be little wavering in Russia’s terms for ending the war. Putin has been uncompromising in his demand that Ukraine relinquish claim to four regions partially occupied by Russia since 2022, as well as Crimea. Trump had threatened to hit Moscow with secondary sanctions if it did not agree to end the war by Aug. 8, an ultimatum that the Kremlin did not heed.