U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday he believes Russian President Vladimir Putin is poised to strike a deal to end the war in Ukraine. This comment follows President Putin’s suggestion that Moscow and Washington might negotiate a nuclear arms agreement just before their much-anticipated summit in Alaska.
President Trump told Fox News radio:
“I believe now, he's convinced that he's going to make a deal. He's going to make a deal. I think he's going to, and we're going to find out.”He added that if the meeting goes well, he intends to immediately call Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and European leaders, but if it fails, he would not. The Alaska talks, he noted, are meant to pave the way for a second summit that would include Ukraine, where issues of boundaries and land would be central.
Putin Signals Nuclear Arms Control Discussions
In televised remarks, President Putin praised the United States for making “quite energetic and sincere efforts to stop the hostilities”. He proposed that if progress is made, the talks could expand to include an agreement on strategic offensive weapons as part of broader long-term peace, potentially opening the door to a nuclear arms control deal.
Putin also indicated discussions would likely touch on the “huge untapped potential” for bolstering Russia–U.S. economic cooperation — suggesting a multi-layered agenda beyond the immediate conflict.
Ukrainian Allies Push Back, Seek Security Guarantees
Meanwhile, President Zelenskiy and European leaders have intensified diplomatic efforts to ensure that any deal emerging from the summit does not leave Ukraine vulnerable. They are united in the demand that Ukraine must be included in subsequent negotiations and that any agreement respecting its sovereignty, without territorial concessions or weakening its NATO ambitions.
There is deep concern that a deal made without Ukraine’s explicit participation could effectively reward Russia for its territorial gains, which currently encompass roughly a fifth of Ukraine and embolden further aggression.
Summit Format and Stakes
The Trump–Putin summit, slated for Anchorage, Alaska, is to begin with a private one-on-one, followed by talks between delegations and a joint press conference. It marks the first U.S.–Russia summit on American soil since 1988.
Trump has characterized the meeting as a “chess game” that sets up a potential follow-up with Zelenskiy and Putin. He estimates a 75% chance of success, but later acknowledged roughly a 25% possibility the meeting could fail.
Additional Insight
This summit comes at one of the most tenuous moments in the war with tens of thousands killed and millions displaced since the full-scale invasion in February 2022. Ukraine’s growing battlefield pressure only underscores the urgency, but also the dangers of rushing toward a deal that might entrench Russia’s territorial control or bypass international norms around sovereignty.
The inclusion of nuclear arms control discussions is especially noteworthy: it not only raises the stakes qualitatively but also signals a shift toward exploring broader security architecture in post-conflict Europe. Meanwhile, the prospect of economic cooperation between long-estranged Washington and Moscow hints at potential incentives for Russia to engage, even as Ukraine and its allies warn against distraction tactics.