In the wake of US President Donald Trump's announcement of a scheduled meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday, 15th August 2025, in Alaska to discuss putting an end to the war in Ukraine, India's Ministry of External Affairs welcomed the development.
In an official statement, India welcomed “the understanding reached between the United States and the Russian Federation for a meeting in Alaska on 15th August 2025.”
The statement highlighted the potential of the talks to “bring an end to the ongoing conflict in Ukraine and open up prospects for peace.” It also referenced Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s repeated message that “This is not an era of war.”
This visit will be Putin's first to the United States in nearly seven years, since 2015, when he met with then-President Barack Obama.
President Trump announced the news on his social media platform Truth Social, saying, "The much anticipated meeting between myself, as President of the United States of America, and President Vladimir Putin of Russia will occur next Friday, August 15, 2025, in the Great State of Alaska. Further information to follow. Thank you for your attention to this matter!"
The Kremlin said the two leaders intend to concentrate on "exchanging views on the possibilities of achieving a long-term peaceful solution to the Ukrainian crisis," describing the exercise as "difficult" but reiterating Moscow's commitment to participate "actively and energetically.
At a White House event marking the signing of the Armenia-Azerbaijan peace accord, Trump suggested that any deal between Russia and Ukraine could involve territorial exchanges. “We’re going to get some back, and we’re going to get some switched. There’ll be some swapping of territories to the betterment of both, but we’ll be talking about that either later or tomorrow,” he told reporters.
But Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky reacted strongly on Saturday, declaring that the Ukrainians "will not give their land to occupiers." In a Telegram post, Zelensky reiterated, "The answer to the territorial question of Ukraine is already contained in the constitution of Ukraine. Nobody will and nobody can go off course. Ukrainians will not give their land to the occupier."
Also, Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff had a three-hour meeting with Putin in Moscow, which the US termed as "highly productive."
Independently, on Wednesday, Trump imposed a 25 percent tariff on India with regard to its Russian oil imports.
Read also| Putin-Trump Meeting Set for August 15 in Alaska
