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President Trump arrived Friday afternoon at the Alaskan military base for a face-to-face meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin to bring an end to the Ukraine war.
Air Force One landed at 10:30 a.m. local time in Anchorage. Mr. Putin arrived a short time later.
Ahead of the meeting, Mr. Trump said he was unsure what would make the meeting a success and tempered expectations by saying he didn’t know if a ceasefire deal could be reached during the talks.
“There’s nothing set in stone,” Mr. Trump said. “I want to see a ceasefire rapidly. I don’t know if it’s going to be today, but I’m not going to be happy if it’s not today. … Everyone said it can’t be today, but I’m just saying, I want the killing to stop.”
He also doubled down on his threat of “severe” consequences for Russia if Mr. Putin doesn’t try in earnest to reach a peace deal.
“Economically severe. Yes, it will be very severe,” he said. “I’m not doing this for my health, OK? I don’t need it. I’d like to focus on our country. But I’m doing this to save a lot of lives.”
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A red carpet is laid out in an L-shape on the tarmac for the two leaders to walk down to a platform that says, “Alaska 2025.” It is expected that their joint press conference could take place on the platform. In addition, four F-22 Raptor fighter jets are lined up alongside the red carpet.
The summit was initially scheduled as a one-on-one meeting between Mr. Trump and Mr. Putin, but it has now been expanded to a three-on-three meeting. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and special envoy Steve Witkoff will also participate, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters aboard Air Force One.
It was unclear who would accompany Mr. Putin in the meeting.
Mr. Rubio, Mr. Witkoff, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and White House chief of staff Susie Wiles will also join.
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