Former MI6 chief: Alaska summit could be “historic turning point”

As US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin prepare to meet in Alaska, former MI6 chief Sir John Sawers has issued a stark warning that the summit could become a “historic turning point” — for better or worse. In remarks to Sky News, Sawers cautioned that Vladimir Putin may attempt to convince Trump of Russia’s "right to dominance over Ukraine," and warned of the serious risks if Trump aligns too closely with Moscow’s position.

Former chief of the UK’s Secret Intelligence Service said that the meeting could signal a dangerous shift in US foreign policy.

Sir John Sawers, who served as head of MI6 from 2009 to 2014, noted that Putin is likely to attempt to sway Trump into accepting Russia’s dominance over Ukraine.

“I think he [Putin] will want to persuade President Trump that Russia has a right to Ukraine, a right to dominance over Ukraine, that the war will inevitably end in Russian victory and that President Trump should distance himself from Kyiv and the Europeans,” Sir John said.

He cautioned that one of the greatest risks of the Alaska summit is the possibility of Trump aligning too closely with the Kremlin’s narrative.

“Whether he will succeed in that I am not sure, but I think it will be a fairly substantial summit that we are entering into, which won’t only discuss Ukraine. It is going to also discuss US-Russia relations and I think that might be a complicating factor for the Ukrainians,” he added.

The former intelligence chief did not rule out the potential for progress but maintained a cautious tone.

“It is a big risk actually what is taking place today. It may… be a historic turning point. I think the most we can reasonably expect is the start of a process,” he said.

“But there are risks here that President Trump makes a mistake, he is drawn into President Putin’s way of thinking and that would be a very poor outcome.”

The summit, Putin’s first visit to the US in over a decade, is being closely watched by international observers amid ongoing conflict in Ukraine and concerns over waning transatlantic unity. With key decisions potentially on the table, analysts warn that the results could reverberate far beyond Alaska.

By Vafa Guliyeva