Casablanca – US President Donald Trump has issued a stark warning to Russian President Vladimir Putin ahead of their high-stakes summit in Anchorage, Alaska, saying Moscow will face “very severe consequences” if he refuses to agree to a ceasefire in Ukraine.
The meeting, scheduled for Friday at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, comes amid mounting international pressure to halt Russia’s full-scale invasion, now in its third year.
Speaking to reporters in Washington on Wednesday, Trump confirmed he had held a “very good” call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and several European leaders, including Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron.
Trump insisted the Alaska summit was a “feel-out” session rather than a substantive negotiation, aimed at testing Putin’s readiness for a temporary ceasefire. He also hinted at potential economic pressure, with US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent warning of further sanctions on Russia’s trading partners if talks falter.
In Moscow, Russian officials dismissed Europe’s behind-the-scenes diplomacy as “politically insignificant,” but signaled that the meeting would cover the full scope of US-Russia relations, not just Ukraine. Veteran Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov is expected to join the talks.
Since the start of Russia’s invasion in Ukraine February 2022, Zelensky and Putin have not met face-to-face. Trump’s latest remarks suggest that could change soon.
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