Trump will try to get closer to Putin in Alaska without making a firm commitment to Ukraine
Friday's meeting comes surrounded by uncertainty: Ukrainian President Volodimir Zelenski will not intervene and little progress is expected for a ceasefire or peace process.
A summit between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin is expected in Alaska on Friday. It will be the first face-to-face since Russia invaded Ukraine. Uncertainty has prevailed over the lack of precision on how to end the conflict in Ukraine.
The meeting place will be the military base called Elmendorf-Richardson, but according to the White House, this time Putin has taken the first step and will cross the Bering Strait on Friday for the historic meeting in the former Russian colony.
"The president has agreed to hold that meeting at the request of President Putin, and the purpose of the meeting for Trump is to better understand how to end this war," White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said on Tuesday. The spokesman explained that the meeting will be a "listening exercise," so there is little chance of achieving anything, especially since Ukrainian President Volodimir Zelensky will not be present.
This Wednesday, Trump said that this meeting will serve to "see where we are," and that if the meeting goes well, it will be "a quick second," because there could be clear results on a ceasefire and peace process for Ukraine.
To reach Friday's summit in Alaska (which was Russian territory until 1867), Trump has sent nearly half a dozen times his representative, Steve Witkoff, to meet with Putin. He has spent long hours with him and has shown goodwill, such as the release of American prisoners detained in Russia.
Trump arrives in Alaska confident in his ability to read Putin, a former KGB agent who is viewed favourably in some parts of the MAGA movement. "I will probably know for the first two minutes whether an agreement can be reached," the president said on Monday.
Trump's confidence contrasts with that of his European partners, who held an "emergency" meeting with Zelensky on Wednesday to strengthen positions on defending Ukrainian interests vis-à-vis Putin, such as the need for Ukraine to accept all territorial concessions.
Since coming to power in January, Trump has gone from giving more weight to Putin's word than to that of Zelensky (who had a serious incident in the Oval Office at the end of February and told him he had no "word" in the peace negotiations) to saying that he is losing patience with the Russian word, which says a lot of "nonsense" and faces "very serious consequences" if he does not stop bombing Ukrainian cities.
You might like
Israel and Lebanon will meet for the second time on Thursday in Washington
A White House spokesperson has reported that Israel and Lebanon will begin a second round of negotiations on 23 April, which will be resumed by Washington.
In the absence of a majority to overturn the Association Agreement, Kallas advocates trade measures against Israel
Last September the European Commission proposed the suspension of certain trading points of the agreement, a decision which requires only a qualified majority and does not constitute a complete breach of the treaty.
Garamendi has warned that the ACV has a "problem" with investments: "Less investment is made than in other communities."
The president of the Spanish employers has pointed out that the fact that about "half of all strikes" take place in the state in the ACV "does not help much" in attracting investment.
Iran accuses the US of violating the ceasefire after attacking a ship in Ormuz
Tehran denounces an act of "maritime piracy" and responds with drones. Tension and mistrust are growing on the verge of talks for a peace agreement.
Rumen Radev has won the Bulgarian elections, according to the first results
Radev seems likely to form a stable government, ending years of political instability. Progressive Bulgaria has won between 38% and 40% of the vote, according to the first data, gaining broad support from the other parties.
Eight children between the ages of one and fourteen have been killed in a shooting in Louisiana
According to the police, the incident was "a domestic quarrel." At first, the alleged perpetrator of the shooting fled, but was captured and later killed by police officers.
Iran says it is making progress in negotiations with the US, but the final agreement is still a long way off
Iranian President Masud Pezeshkian has replied to Trump that he cannot deprive him of his "right" to develop nuclear power.
Iran has again imposed restrictions on the Strait of Hormuz
Tehran warned today that it would close the strait again if the US did not lift the blockade on Iranian ports. US President Donal Trump has also failed to defuse tension and has warned that if he fails to reach an agreement with Iran by Wednesday, he will "start firing bombs again."
The EU says the opening of Ormuz is good news but insists that travel must be free
"The imposition of tolls for transit would set a dangerous precedent," said the European Union's High Representative for Foreign Affairs, Kaja Kallas. On the other hand, in the context of the crisis and convened by France and the United Kingdom, 50 countries and international organizations have met in Paris. They have announced the launch of a "neutral" maritime mission to "assist and protect" ships passing through the Persian Gulf.
Iran announces that the Strait of Hormuz will remain "fully open" as long as the cease-fire continues
The Iranian Foreign Minister has made this announcement just after the entry into force of the Israeli-Lebanese Summit. He has indicated that ships must follow a "notified and coordinated" route by the Iranian Port and Maritime Organization.