What Putin wants from Trump at the Alaska summit: between diplomacy and geopolitics

Volodymyr Putin's first official visit to the USA in almost two decades, which will take place at a summit with Donald Trump in Alaska, has become a symbolic platform for discussing complex geopolitical issues.

The Kremlin is trying to maintain communication with Washington, avoid new sanctions, and seek diplomatic ways to resolve the war in Ukraine, without compromising its territorial ambitions.

This is reported by the Financial Times, writes UNN.

Details

The summit in Alaska, a place with a rich history of relations between Russia and the USA, becomes a symbol of the Kremlin's modern diplomacy. Unlike the peaceful 19th-century agreement on the sale of Alaska, current events remind us that borders are not always an immutable category, and territory can become a tool in major political games.

Despite Russia's significant military successes in eastern Ukraine and pressure on Ukrainian cities, analysts agree that Putin is not ready to compromise or soften his maximalist demands.

His main task is to maintain an open channel of communication with Donald Trump, so as not to lose the interest of the American leader, who has already expressed disappointment with Moscow's actions.

After the visit of US Special Representative Steve Witkoff to Moscow and the proximity of deadlines for a ceasefire or the imposition of sanctions, there was an unexpected change in mood. Russia received its first official invitation to the USA in 18 years, which indicates the mutual readiness of both sides to find a diplomatic solution. Experts believe that both Putin and Trump found themselves in a situation where each seeks to save face and not appear weak.

The absence of the Ukrainian side at the meeting is a long-awaited "victory" for the Kremlin, which is not making significant concessions on its key demands: Ukraine's rejection of NATO, demilitarization, and the withdrawal of troops from part of the occupied territories. Experts call such conditions a "political gain" for Putin without significant losses.

For Ukraine, this meeting is a signal of three main challenges:

• the Kremlin's desire to emerge from international isolation;
• the attempt of Russian authorities to avoid new sanctions;
• to use the diplomatic platform to achieve goals that are not being achieved on the battlefield.

Meanwhile, on the front, Russian troops continue offensive operations, seizing hundreds of square kilometers of territory and trying to encircle strategically important cities. 

Russia's economic situation is also deteriorating: declining energy revenues and new American tariffs on Russian oil are increasing pressure on the Kremlin.

However, according to experts, these problems do not yet change Putin's position on the war. For him, sanctions are a consequence of Trump's irritation, not a real threat.

The main concern of the Russian president is to maintain the attention and support of the former American leader. The meeting in Alaska, despite all contradictions, became a diplomatic victory for Putin, who demonstrates his influence and desire to redistribute global spheres of influence with the support of Trump and China.

At the same time, the prospect of a prolonged frozen confrontation, similar to the Korean armistice, seems increasingly real.

Ukraine and its allies insist on a ceasefire as a prerequisite for negotiations, but against the backdrop of events on the battlefield and the Kremlin's political ambitions, peace remains elusive for now.

Recall

European leaders insist on consultations with Trump to define Europe's "red lines" before his meeting with Putin in Alaska. The discussion will concern the war in Ukraine and a possible ceasefire.