For the first time in ten years, Vladimir Putin is setting foot on United States soil. Donald Trump believes he can talk the Russian president into a deal to end Moscow’s war in Ukraine. He has not said exactly what he is willing to give up to get it.
The summit in Anchorage, Alaska, is being framed by Trump as a chance to prove he can be a peacemaker. For Putin, it is an opening to shift strategy without facing Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy across the table.
Zelenskyy has not been invited to the meeting at Joint Base Elmendorf Richardson. Trump has hinted he hopes the Ukrainian leader will be there for a second round of talks, but for now the focus is on the first face to face between a United States president and Putin since Russia’s full scale invasion in February 2022.
On the streets of Anchorage, the welcome could not be colder. Pro Ukrainian protesters filled the city early Friday morning, chanting and holding signs demanding that Russia return 20,000 Ukrainian children taken during the war. “Ukraine and Alaska — Russian never again,”
🇺🇦Anchorage, Alaska. Thank you for this beautiful display of support and humanity. Thank you for being on the right side of history, and showing others exactly what that side stand for! #StandWithUkraine pic.twitter.com/W8PovrLRG6
— Їne Back Їversen (@IneBackIversen) August 15, 2025
Stay up-to-date with the latest news!
Subscribe and start recieving our daily emails.
I can’t stop looking at the images from Alaska today.
The world is full of shitty people, many of them “hold power”
But real power come from people who vote, speak up & show support for what matters.
People that make you go: The world is full of good people.
Today it’s them ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/2ajoQCEm8H— Їne Back Їversen (@IneBackIversen) August 15, 2025
For many, holding it in Alaska made things even worse. “The decision to host Putin, a war criminal, on Alaskan soil is a betrayal of our history and the moral clarity demanded by the suffering of Ukraine and other occupied peoples,” the Native Movement NGO said in a statement. “Native Movement voices opposition to any deals that force Ukraine to cede territory, reward aggression, or silence the voices of those whose lives are at stake.”
Organizers from Stand UP Alaska also made their feelings clear. “Alaska opposes tyranny,” they wrote on Facebook, urging supporters to “come together in Anchorage, Alaska, to protest against an international war criminal hanging out here.”
According to the group, about 1,000 people turned out on Thursday in support of Ukraine. Protesters waved flags, beat drums, and made sure Trump knew the city was not on his side for this meeting.
Earlier this week, Trump described the summit as a “feel out meeting” but warned that Putin will face “very severe consequences” if he refuses to end the conflict. His critics are not convinced. Many believe Trump is more interested in the appearance of diplomacy than in holding Putin accountable.
Featured image via X screengrab
