Inconvenient Collaboration: Analyzing the Choice of Alaska for the Trump-Putin Summit on Ukraine | Ukraine

It is unlikely that Vladimir Putin will travel to Alaska to present Donald Trump with a territorial demand for the 49th state, which was purchased by the US from Tsar Alexander II for $7.2m in 1867. Instead, Putin is focused on persuading Trump to consider swapping parts of Ukrainian territory in exchange for a potential ceasefire agreement, according to Yuri Ushakov, a foreign affairs adviser for Putin. Alaska’s remote location suggests that other factors may also be at play, considering it is not close to Ukraine or its European allies. However, Trump is open to allowing Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to attend, but Putin may not be as welcoming. Additionally, Putin is wanted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes, but neither Russia nor the US recognize the court. Past US-Russia summits have been held in cooler locations, such as Helsinki, where Trump said he trusted Putin more than his own intelligence agencies. While the Alaska meeting may not lead to any significant progress towards a ceasefire in Ukraine, it is the fourth US-Russia summit since 2010

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/aug/11/why-alaska-for-the-trump-putin-summit-on-ukraine