U.S. President Donald Trump departed Washington on Friday morning for Anchorage, Alaska, where he will meet Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss a possible ceasefire in Ukraine. The meeting marks the first face-to-face talks between the two leaders since the outbreak of the Russia–Ukraine conflict in 2022.
Trump is traveling with senior members of his Cabinet, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, and special presidential envoy Steve Witkoff, who has held preliminary talks with Putin in Moscow.
Speaking aboard Air Force One, Trump said he was “not here to negotiate for Ukraine” but to “get them to the table,” adding he hopes to arrange a second meeting soon that would include Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky if talks with Putin progress. He suggested potential joint security guarantees for Kyiv with European nations — but “not in the form of NATO.”
The leaders will meet later today at Joint Base Elmendorf–Richardson in Anchorage, a key U.S. military hub for Arctic operations. Trump has downplayed expectations, acknowledging that achieving peace in Ukraine is “more difficult than I thought,” but said he aims to secure at least a ceasefire to pave the way for broader peace talks.
