
U.S. President Donald Trump shakes hand with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the end of a press conference at the Presidential Palace in Helsinki on July 16, 2018.
| Photo Credit: AP
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday (August 14, 2025) he believes Russian President Vladimir Putin will make a deal about his war on Ukraine, and that the threat of sanctions against Russia likely played a role in Moscowās decision to seek a meeting. Mr. Trump is scheduled to meet with Mr. Putin in Alaska on Friday (August 15, 2025). The U.S. President said he is unsure whether an immediate ceasefire can be achieved, but expressed interest in brokering a peace agreement.
āI believe now, heās convinced that heās going to make a deal. Heās going to make a deal. I think heās going to, and weāre going to find out,ā Mr. Trump said in an interview on Fox News Radioās āThe Brian Kilmeade Show.ā
Putin praises U.S. for āsincere effortsā
Earlier in the day, Mr. Putin said the United States was making āsincere effortsā to end the war in Ukraine and suggested Moscow and Washington could agree on a nuclear arms deal as part of a broader push to strengthen peace.
Mr. Trump also mentioned during the Fox interview that he has three locations in mind for a follow-up meeting with Mr. Putin and Ukraineās President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, though he noted that a second meeting is not guaranteed.
He said staying in Alaska for a three-way summit would be the easiest scenario.

A line of vehicles waits to enter Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska on August 14, 2025, ahead of a meeting between President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
| Photo Credit:
AP
āDepending on what happens with my meeting, Iām going to be calling up President Zelenskyy, and letās get him over to wherever weāre going to meet,ā Mr. Trump said.
He said a second meeting, featuring Mr. Trump, Mr. Putin, and Mr. Zelenskyy, would likely dig deeper into boundary issues. Mr. Zelenskyy has been adamant about not ceding territory that Russian forces occupy.
āThe second meeting is going to be very, very important, because thatās going to be a meeting where they make a deal. And I donāt want to use the word ādivvy things up,ā but you know, to a certain extent, itās not a bad term, OK?ā he said.
āBut there will be a give and take as to boundaries, lands, etc, etc. The second meeting is going to be very, very very important. This meeting sets up like a chess game. This (first) meeting sets up a second meeting, but there is a 25% chance that this meeting will not be a successful meeting,ā he said.
He said it would be up to Mr. Putin and Mr. Zelenskyy to strike an agreement.
āIām not going to negotiate their deal. Iām going to let them negotiate their deal,ā he said.
Published ā August 14, 2025 09:40 pm IST