Expectations in Russia from the meeting between Putin and Trump: comments from experts and officials
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- Expectations in Russia from the meeting between Putin and Trump: comments from experts and officials
On August 15, Alaska will host the summit of the Presidents of Russia and the United States, Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump. First of all, the leaders will discuss a long-term settlement of the conflict in Ukraine. Also on the agenda is an assessment of the possibility of cooperation in key areas for the countries. Izvestia gathered the opinions of experts and officials about the upcoming meeting.
The meeting between Putin and Trump — when and where will it take place
On August 15, Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump will meet in Alaska. On Tuesday, White House press Secretary Caroline Leavitt confirmed that the talks would take place in Anchorage, and later it became known that the talks would take place at the Elmendorf–Richardson military base. The summit will begin around 11:30 a.m. local time (22:30 GMT on Friday).
According to Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov, the conversation will take place in a one-on-one format with the participation of interpreters. After that, negotiations will take place as part of the delegations, they will continue over a working breakfast. Following these events, Putin and Trump will hold a joint press conference.
The main focus of the negotiations will be on finding a long-term solution to the conflict in Ukraine.
Statements by Putin and Trump on the eve of the summit
On the eve of the summit, Putin held a meeting in the Kremlin with members of the top leadership dedicated to. He said that the agreements on Ukraine should create long-term conditions for peace between the two countries and in Europe. The president also did not rule out reaching an agreement on START in the event of creating long-term peace conditions for the parties to the conflict in Ukraine following the meeting with Trump. At the same time, according to him, the US administration is making quite energetic and sincere efforts to resolve the situation in Ukraine.
Trump, commenting on the upcoming summit, promised to appeal to Putin to stop the fighting. He also expressed dissatisfaction with the policy of Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky and announced his intention to bring him to the same table with the Russian leader. The White House stressed that the American president plans to touch upon topics not directly related to the Ukrainian settlement in his conversation with Moscow.
At the same time, Trump is tightening his position before the Alaska summit. In particular, he threatened with sanctions and stated that he would not discuss territorial changes, although he had previously said the opposite.
The American president estimated the probability of success of the upcoming meeting with Vladimir Putin at 75%. According to him, negotiations are like a chess game where there is a risk of failure. At the same time, he said that the meeting in Alaska would serve as a preparation for new negotiations.
Officials — about the upcoming meeting
Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that preparations for the meeting between Putin and Trump had taken place "in a very, very short time," but all the parameters had been met. Russia and the United States do not plan to prepare any document following the talks between the leaders.
Kirill Dmitriev, head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), stressed that the Russian-US summit in Alaska provides a chance to reset US-Russian relations. He added that it is important for Russia to have its position heard directly, as there is a lot of misunderstanding and misinformation.
Kirill Dmitriev
It is very important that the dialogue continues. It is very important that Russia's position is heard.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said that the reaction to the meeting of the presidents is a litmus test for everyone.
The official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova
The meeting is a recognition of whose you will be, what you are like.
Russian experts — about the upcoming meeting
Political analyst Vladimir Shapovalov predicted in an interview with Izvestia that significant changes in Russian-American relations could occur as a result of the negotiations. However, one should not count on an alliance between the two countries.
Political scientist Vladimir Shapovalov
We are talking about a possible turnaround in relations between the two largest nuclear powers in the world, and a positive resolution of conflict situations...> may <...> mark a period of transition to <...> a more peaceful version of the rivalry between the United States and Russia
At the same time, Bogdan Bezpalko, a member of the Presidential Council on Interethnic Relations, told Izvestia that all issues would not be resolved during the negotiations in Alaska. The meeting will only become a symbol of the beginning of the negotiation process.
Bogdan Bezpalko, Member of the Presidential Council on Interethnic Relations
Accordingly, throughout this entire negotiation track, Ukraine will try to organize or use the provocations that have already taken place.
Peter Kuznik, director of the Institute for Nuclear Research at the American University in Washington, added in an interview with Izvestia that the meeting could give an impetus to cooperation between the two countries on key bilateral issues, in particular on the implementation of the tunnel project through the Bering Strait.
Peter Kuznik, Director of the Institute for Nuclear Research at the American University in Washington
This could mean the beginning of economic cooperation between the United States and Russia. The Arctic contains a large number of rare earth minerals. We could organize a joint project to develop them. They also discussed the tunnel through the Bering Strait, which is being discussed both here and in Russia. This is a major high-speed railway project connecting Eurasia and the United States.
Experts interviewed by Izvestia believe that there are three possible outcomes of the negotiations. So, a positive scenario assumes that the leaders of the two countries will sign basic agreements and be able to resolve the conflict in Ukraine. There is also a neutral option — the meeting in Alaska will be more formal, but it will be a big step in resolving the situation. And finally, another scenario is the withdrawal of the parties from the dialogue.
Head of the American Chamber of Commerce in Russia (AMCAM) Robert Agee said that American investors expect progress in the Ukrainian settlement, which will allow them to return to the Russian market.
Putin and Trump meeting — possible prospects
The meeting between Putin and Trump will be an event with a wide range of political consequences. After all, the agenda probably covers the situation in Ukraine, as well as a number of other areas of the international and bilateral agenda. The venue was chosen taking into account Alaska's strategic position as a zone of intersection between the interests of the United States and Russia in the Arctic and the Pacific.
The format of the negotiations involves a detailed discussion of mechanisms for de-escalating the Ukrainian conflict with the possible consolidation of concrete steps that will be implemented in stages and with the participation of relevant working groups. An important element capable of increasing the stability of the agreements will be the possible restoration of economic contacts, as well as the easing of sanctions restrictions. In addition to the Ukrainian topic, the meeting may touch upon issues of strategic stability, including, for example, the resumption of inspections under arms control treaties.
In particular, proposals for joint projects in the Arctic, modernization of the infrastructure of the Northern Sea Route and coordination of efforts to reduce the risks associated with climate change may appear in the energy and climate blocks. The Alaska talks can be a starting point for a long-term dialogue format. Acute crisis issues and stable cooperation programs are expected to be discussed.
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