Vice President JD Vance returned from Europe this weekend claiming “significant progress” in diplomatic talks meant to set the stage for President Donald Trump’s high-stakes meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska later this week. The administration views this summit as a potential turning point in ending the grinding war in Ukraine, now entering its fourth year.
At the request of the White House, Vance held a series of meetings with UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy and other European leaders, focusing on Ukraine, the Middle East, and shared economic and technological goals. According to a senior U.S. official, Saturday’s hours-long discussions produced “meaningful steps forward toward President Trump’s goal of bringing an end to the war in Ukraine.”
These developments come as Trump signals a willingness to broker a deal involving “swapping of territories, to the betterment” of both sides. Russia currently controls roughly 20 percent of Ukrainian territory, including areas in Donetsk, Luhansk, and parts of the south. While Trump has not detailed the full scope of the possible agreement, he has made clear that his approach will focus on hard-nosed negotiations and direct U.S. leadership — without the interference of European power brokers.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy over the weekend renewed calls for harsher sanctions and greater pressure on Moscow, accusing Russia of making “no real step toward peace” on the battlefield or in the skies. Zelenskyy has expressed interest in joining the Alaska talks, though no formal invitation has been extended. Vance told Fox News on Sunday that a three-way meeting is being considered but should follow Trump’s one-on-one with Putin.
One of the major roadblocks, Vance noted, has already shifted. Putin had long refused to meet with Zelenskyy under any circumstances — a position that has now changed after Trump’s intervention. “We’re at the point now where we’re trying to figure out scheduling and logistics,” Vance said, adding that the president’s personal involvement has been key to breaking the deadlock.
The Kremlin publicly praised the choice of Alaska as the meeting site, noting that Russia and the United States share a border across the Bering Strait. In a statement, Russian officials said the two leaders would “focus on discussing ways to reach a sustainable settlement to the Ukraine crisis.” Moscow also extended an invitation for a follow-up summit to be held on Russian soil.
With the meeting now days away, Trump’s team is working to secure the final conditions for talks, mindful that any agreement will likely draw criticism from entrenched interests on both sides. But for Trump, the Alaska summit represents an opportunity to assert U.S. leadership in shaping the post-war order — and to demonstrate that Washington, not Brussels, will dictate the terms of peace.
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