US President Donald Trump estimates a 75% chance of success for his Alaska meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin and signals the potential for a trilateral discussion with Ukraine's President Zelenskyy if talks go well.
A Fox News Radio host asked the US head of state to assess the likelihood that he would conclude the meeting was not worthwhile following talks with Putin. Trump said the probability of that happening was 25%. "This meeting sets up like a chess game. This [first] meeting sets up a second meeting, but there is a 25% chance that this meeting will not be a successful meeting," the US leader pointed out. Trump added that, if his talks with Putin are successful, he could organize a trilateral meeting with Vladimir Zelenskyy, News.Az reports, citing TASS.
Three different locations are currently being considered for the meeting, and the possibility of holding the trilateral talks in Alaska has not been ruled out. On August 8, Trump announced that he was looking forward to meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska on August 15. The plans for the talks were then confirmed by Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov.
According to him, the leaders will focus on discussing options for achieving a long-term peaceful settlement of the Ukrainian crisis. The Kremlin expects the next meeting between Putin and Trump to take place on Russian territory, Ushakov added. Following a meeting in the Kremlin with the UAE leader on August 7, the Russian president said that he was open to meeting with Zelenskyy, but that the conditions for such a meeting needed to be created. "Unfortunately, we are still a long way from creating such conditions," he added. The Kremlin has repeatedly emphasized that a lot of preparatory work needs to be done before Putin and Zelenskyy can meet.
Meanwhile, Kiev is insisting on such a meeting without a clear agenda. According to Ushakov, the US mentioned the possibility of a trilateral meeting between Putin, Zelenskyy, and Trump. However, Moscow declined to comment on this possibility and called for a focus on the bilateral summit between Russia and the US.
