Reuters: Trump, Putin revive cold war theatre in bid to end Ukraine conflict

US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin hold talks at a Cold War-era air force base in Alaska for critical talks aimed at brokering a ceasefire in Ukraine and exploring a potential nuclear arms control deal.

The summit marked their first in-person meeting since Trump returned to the White House, and comes amid deep concerns in Kyiv and across Europe that Trump could make concessions at Ukraine’s expense. Although Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was not invited, Trump said a future three-way summit including him “would be even more important” than the August 15 talks, Reuters reports.

Trump, who had once pledged to end the war within 24 hours, acknowledged that the three-and-a-half-year conflict had proven “a tougher nut to crack than he had thought.” Still, he expressed optimism, saying, “I think Putin would do a deal on Ukraine.”

Putin, facing mounting economic pressure from Western sanctions, has hinted at flexibility, including a possible nuclear arms control agreement. “Sincere efforts” by the US to end the war were praised by the Russian leader. A source close to the Kremlin told Reuters, “Apparently, some terms will be agreed upon tomorrow because Trump cannot be refused, and we are not in a position to refuse.”

Zelenskyy, speaking after an August 13 conference call with Trump, said the US president had affirmed that “Ukraine must be involved in any talks about ceding land” and supported post-war security guarantees. Trump, however, has not publicly confirmed those commitments.

Trump has also floated controversial solutions. “Land transfers between Russia and Ukraine could be a possible way of breaking the logjam,” he said — a suggestion Ukraine has flatly rejected.

Putin’s demands remain firm: complete control of Donbas, full seizure of Kherson and Zaporizhzhia, a ban on NATO membership for Ukraine, and restrictions on Ukraine’s military. Zelenskyy called the demands “unacceptable and tantamount to asking it to capitulate.”

Analysts caution that any truce could be tactical. 

"If they (the Russians) are able to put a deal on the table that creates some kind of a ceasefire but that leaves Russia in control of those escalatory dynamics, does not create any kind of genuine deterrence on the ground or in the skies over Ukraine... that would be a wonderful outcome from Putin's perspective," said Sam Greene, director of Democratic Resilience at the Center for European Policy Analysis.

By Vafa Guliyeva