The U.S. and Russian presidents have started their meeting, with senior aides in the room.
President Donald Trump welcomed Russian President Vladimir Putin to Alaska with a red carpet on the tarmac, military flyover, friendly handshakes and a short ride in his presidential limousine.
It was a striking welcome for a leader who has been a global pariah since his 2022 invasion of Ukraine — and one who Trump has been increasingly frustrated with in recent months because of his resistance to Trump’s peacemaking efforts. The initial image of a smiling Putin riding off in Trump’s limousine could raise fears in Ukraine and Europe, where leaders have urged Trump to hold a firm line with the Russian leader, who many suspect is aiming to buy time by repairing his relationship with Trump but not willing to end the war.
The private meeting without aides in the back of the limousine played out shortly after the White House announced that the two leaders would not be sitting down alone, but with a couple of their top aides.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said just after Trump landed in Anchorage at 10:20 a.m. local time that Trump plans to bring Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Special Envoy Steve Witkoff with him into the room with Putin.
It was not immediately clear if the Russian side was caught off guard by the announcement or if Putin will seek to bring his foreign minister, Sergey Lavrov, or other advisers with him for the meeting.
Several of Trump and Putin’s previous meetings did not include aides.
According to the White House, Trump and Putin will also take part in an expanded bilateral lunch meeting that will include Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and chief of staff Susie Wiles.
Trump has said in recent days, and again Friday morning during an interview aboard Air Force One as he flew to Alaska, that he would be able to determine in his first minutes with Putin whether he’s serious about negotiating an end to the war in Ukraine.
But the backdrop behind a stage where Trump may hold a joint press conference with Putin following their meetings reads ‘Pursuing Peace,’ seemingly an indication that the president is eager to present the meeting as a success.
