Trump tempers outlook for Alaska summit as Russian forces advance in Ukraine
Trump's remarks, at a news conference, came as military analysts and Ukrainian officials reported significant territorial gains by Russian forces at key positions on the battlefield in eastern Ukraine — advances that could give Putin added incentive to forgo a truce in favor of continued fighting.
Russian forces have made major advances across the east in the past days, consolidating gains close to the cities of Kramatorsk and Dobropillya. Both cities have served as major hubs for the Ukrainian military, and Kramatorsk in particular remains home to thousands of civilians who refused to flee.
At his news conference on Monday, Trump continued to talk about the difficult task of ending Russia's war in loose language more befitting a real estate deal or reality TV show than a complex mediation effort to halt more than a decade of Russia military action in Ukraine.
'Probably in the first two minutes, I'll know exactly whether or not a deal can be made,' Trump told reporters on Monday. He said he planned to tell Putin, 'you gotta end this war' and to see if there's 'a fair deal' on the table. He also again referred to potential territorial concessions without details.
A truce, Trump suggested, could involve 'some land-swapping' — though Russian now occupies about one-fifth of Ukraine's territory and Ukraine has virtually no Russian territory to trade. Trump, however, talked about returning territory to Ukraine that he described as 'very prime.'
'In real estate, we call it oceanfront property,' Trump said, using a phrase he has also used to described Gaza. As for the meeting with Putin set to take place in Alaska on Friday, Trump said: 'I think it'll be good but it might be bad.'
He added, 'I may leave and say 'good luck,' and that'll be the end.'
Trump once pledged to end Russia's war in one day but since taking office in January has repeatedly expressed deep frustration over being unable to do so.
Trump and Vice President JD Vance at one point upbraided Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in the Oval Office, although more recently Trump has complained about Putin constantly saying he wants to end the war but then continuing to bombard Ukrainian cities.
Trump's expectations for the Alaska summit, including terms Russia might be willing to accept, appeared to be based in part on misunderstandings from a meeting between his envoy, Steve Witkoff, and Putin in Moscow last week.
'Maybe this is strategic ambiguity by Trump or maybe it is a mistake. But no one is offering what he's saying, at least as far as we know,' said a person briefed on the negotiations, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive diplomacy. 'No one understands what's going on.'
Catherine Belton in London, Robyn Dixon in Riga, Latvia, Serhiy Morgunov in Kyiv and Michael Birnbaum in Washington contributed to this report.
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