Yuri Ushakov, Putin's aide, confirmed that the meeting will take place on August 15 in Alaska, reminding that Russia and the United States are connected by a common border - the Bering Sea, which separates not only two countries but also two continents.

"It is quite logical that our delegation simply flies over the Bering Strait and that such an important and expected summit between the two countries takes place in Alaska," said Ušakov.

Russia plans that the next meeting between President Putin and Trump, after the summit in Alaska, will be organized in Russia, and the official invitation to the American president has already been sent.

Holding the summit in Alaska, in addition to logistical advantages for the Russian delegation, which will not have to pass through third countries, will also simplify the work of the security services.

Troy Buffard, director of the Center for Arctic Security and Resilience at the University of Alaska in Fairbanks, told RIA Novosti that the summit will most likely be held in Anchorage or its surroundings, and that no security problems are expected.

"The meeting will probably take place in or around Anchorage. The logistical infrastructure for receiving flights and high-level delegations is well developed there. The most recent example is the meeting of former US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken with the Chinese delegation," Buffard said.

He added that additional resources are always mobilized for presidential visits, including security forces that usually come from federal or capital units.

"We don't expect any security issues," Buffard concluded.

Where will the meeting between Putin and Trump be held?

However, the Alaska authorities told the Russian agency that they still do not have information about the exact location of the summit.

As the Russian agency reports, during the meeting in Alaska, Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin will discuss not only a long-term solution for peace in Ukraine, but also potential economic projects in Alaska and the Arctic region, which Moscow and Washington assess as"extremely promising and beneficial for both sides."

Putin's arrest warrant

Still, the possibility of Trump meeting with Putin has raised logistical questions in recent days, particularly as the Russian leader faces an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court (ICC).

Prosecutors sought his arrest for alleged war crimes committed in Ukraine, and Putin's travel through any ICC member country could result in his detention.

The US, however, is not a member of the ICC and does not recognize the court's authority.

Why Alaska?

Alaska is not the first time that it has been chosen as a place to hold important and sensitive high-level talks. Back in 2021, Anchorage – a city with about 300,000 inhabitants – hosted a meeting between senior officials of the Joseph Biden administration and the Chinese delegation.

During the two-day meeting, the delegations held intensive talks in a four-star hotel in the city center, mostly behind closed doors. The media reported at the time that the atmosphere was tense: the American side expressed"deep concern" about China's activities abroad, while Chinese representatives accused the American delegation of"condescension" and "hypocrisy."

One of the symbolically important aspects of the summit in Alaska is that the American president will be hosted in the territory that once belonged to Russia.

Namely, until March 30, 1867, Alaska was part of the Russian Empire. The Russians established the first settlements there, and explorer Vitus Bering discovered the area in 1741. The first permanent settlement was established in 1783 on Kodiak Island. Due to financial problems, reduced commercial importance and fear that the territory could be taken over by the British, Russia decided to sell Alaska to the United States of America for 7.2 million dollars.

Today, Alaska is the largest American federal state by area - it covers 1,518,775 square kilometers, but has only about half a million inhabitants. The territory is characterized by mountain ranges, active volcanoes, numerous glaciers, as well as the highest peak in North America - Mount McKinley (Denali), which rises to 6,149 meters above sea level.

Alaska Natives – including Native Americans, Eskimos and Aleuts – initially opposed the sale agreement. They received US citizenship only in 1924, and only in 1971 was a decision made to give them the right to own about 11% of the territory and shares in regional oil corporations.

Zelenski does not give an inch of ground

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Kyiv is ready for real solutions that could bring peace, but added that all solutions without Ukraine would be against peace.

As he assessed, these are"dead solutions, which will never work, while everyone needs real, living peace that people will respect".

- Ukrainians defend their own. Even those who are with Russia know that it does evil. Of course, we will not reward Russia for what it has done. The Ukrainian people deserve peace. But all partners must understand what a worthy peace is - announced Zelenski.

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As he emphasized, this war must be ended, and Russia must end it.

According to him, as reported by Ukrinform, Russia started it and is delaying it, not listening to any deadlines,"and that is the problem, not anything else".

- The answer to the Ukrainian territorial question is already in the Constitution of Ukraine. No one will and cannot deviate from this. Ukrainians will not give their land to the occupier - said the head of the Ukrainian state.

He added that he is ready, together with Trump and other partners, to work on a real, and most importantly, lasting peace, a peace that will not collapse because of Moscow's wishes.

Zelensky expressed gratitude to all Ukrainians for their unity and togetherness.

"Ukraine exists. Thank you to all our soldiers for preserving our independence. Be strong. This is our country, we are Ukraine. Glory to Ukraine!" he wrote.

Zelensky noted that Trump announced that he would meet with Putin in Alaska,"very far from this war that is being waged on our land, against our people, and which still cannot be ended without us, without Ukraine," the press service of the Ukrainian president announced.

- Putin did not believe in our people and that is why he made this hopeless decision to try to conquer Ukraine. That was his main mistake, he ignored the Ukrainians - Zelensky said, adding that he believes in the Ukrainian people.

Meeting on Friday

Trump said he plans to meet with the Russian president next Friday in Alaska.

Russian state media agency Tass confirmed the date and location of the meeting, citing Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov.

The US president also said that"there will be some exchange of territories" for the benefit of both Ukraine and Russia and that the issue will be discussed soon, but did not give further details.

Bloomberg reported on Friday that the deal could consolidate some of Putin's territorial gains in Ukraine, effectively freezing the front lines in the Kherson and Zaporozhye regions. Putin has claimed four Ukrainian regions in their entirety, although much of their territory remains under Ukrainian control.

The Kremlin announced

The Kremlin confirmed this morning that Putin will meet Trump in Alaska on Friday, August 15, describing the choice of venue as entirely logical.

"The American side has just announced an agreement to organize a meeting between the Russian and American presidents, Vladimir Putin, and Donald Trump on Friday, August 15, in Alaska. Russia and the USA are close neighbors, countries that border each other, so it seems quite logical that our delegation simply flies over the Bering Strait and that such an important and expected summit of the leaders of the two countries takes place in Alaska," said Kremlin diplomatic advisor Yuri Ushakov, reports RIA.

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Putin offers a truce in exchange for eastern Ukraine?

Russian President Vladimir Putin has reportedly presented a comprehensive ceasefire proposal to US envoy Steve Witkoff, offering an end to the war in exchange for the eastern regions of Ukraine. This information, citing European and Ukrainian officials, was published on August 8 by The Wall Street Journal and reported by the Kyiv Independent.

According to European officials briefed on the conversation, Putin told Vitkoff that Russia would agree to a full ceasefire if Kiev withdrew its forces from the Donetsk region. This would ensure Moscow complete control over Donetsk and Lugansk, as well as over Crimea.

European officials familiar with the proposal have reportedly expressed serious doubts, fearing that Putin is delaying negotiations to avoid secondary sanctions announced by US President Trump. Additional concern is caused by the uncertainty surrounding the fate of the partially occupied territories in Zaporozhye and Kherson, as it is not clear whether the front line would freeze in its current positions or Russian forces would withdraw.

The WSJ says Putin's proposal consists of two phases. The first would involve the withdrawal of Ukrainian forces from Donetsk and the freezing of the front line. In the second phase, Trump and Putin would agree on a final peace agreement, which would be subsequently negotiated with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Timeline of US-Russian relations in 2025.

February 12 - The first official telephone conversation with Putin in Trump's second term was held. Trump said it was a"long and very productive call" in which both sides agreed for the delegations to meet in Saudi Arabia.

February 18 - US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov hold personal talks in Saudi Arabia.

March 18 - Another direct phone call between Trump and Putin. The White House announced that the two leaders agreed on a peace framework that begins with a ceasefire in energy and key infrastructure.

April 11 - Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff meets with Putin in Moscow for further talks.

May 15 - American diplomats and Ukrainian officials meet with representatives of the Russian government for peace talks in Turkey.

August 6 - Witkoff makes his fifth trip to Moscow as Trump's deadline for Russia to accept a ceasefire approaches. Trump imposes 25% additional sanctions on India for buying Russian oil.

August 8 - Ceasefire deadline expires, but Trump confirms he will meet Putin in Alaska next week.

Russian progress in Ukraine

"It's an area four times larger than Liverpool and almost equal to the size of Chicago," writes the BBC.

Russia's goal is to cut the supply lines used by the Ukrainian military in the east, and to create a buffer zone within Ukraine's northern borders. However, Russian progress is still relatively slow. At this rate, it would take them more than 70 years to take over the entire country.

Russian troops managed to penetrate 10-12 kilometers deep into the Sumy region, but that advance was stopped due to fierce resistance.

Vladimir Putin says he wants to create a"buffer zone" to protect Russian territory after Ukrainian forces seized part of the territory of the Kursk region last summer. Russian troops eventually drove them out with the help of North Korean soldiers and ammunition.

Russian army stuck in fighting around village

After that, the Russians crossed the border into Ukraine, but quickly became mired in fighting over small border villages, which still often change hands. Without major reinforcements, it is unlikely that Russian forces will advance further here.

Another northern region into which Russian soldiers allegedly entered is the Kharkiv region.

Military analysts believe these operations are aimed at forcing Ukraine to overstretch its troops along the entire 1,200-kilometer front line, forcing it to withdraw units from key points.

One such critical site is the city of Pokrovsk, a strategic hub in eastern Ukraine that Moscow has been trying to capture for more than two years.

According to the commander of the Ukrainian army, General Oleksandr Sirsky, Russia has concentrated about 111,000 soldiers in the area.

Which Russian operation is the most dangerous?

Russia's greatest success in recent months has been recorded west of Pokrovsk, in the direction that the Ukrainian army calls the Novopavliv direction - after the village of Novopavlivka, which became a defense center after the withdrawal of Ukrainian troops to the west.

Analyst Kostiantyn Mashovets says that the Russian operation in that area is the most dangerous for Ukraine, because there was a"collapse of the Ukrainian defense", which allowed the Russians to advance up to 10 kilometers a day.

The advance was so rapid that Russian military bloggers claimed that Russian troops had reached the neighboring Dnipropetrovsk region for the first time since the beginning of the invasion.

Ukrainian military officials deny the claims, saying that a small Russian unit entered a village in the area to take photos with the Russian flag, but was soon"liquidated". The Institute for the Study of War, however, states that Russian forces are still operating in the area.

Major Trehubov believes that the area has no serious strategic importance for the Russian troops and that their attack is more motivated by political goals.

A further advance into the Dnipropetrovsk region may be useful for propaganda, but would require much larger forces, which are already engaged at Pokrovsk and Konstantinovka.

Despite this, the Ukrainians are under increasing pressure on the front line, as Russian forces are constantly trying to cut off their supply lines with drone attacks.

- We can no longer use the roads we used two months ago - neither during the day nor at night - said Sergeant Viktor Pyasetsky from the 93rd Ukrainian Brigade, stationed near Konstantinovka.

Because of this, it is now extremely difficult and slow to deliver food and ammunition, evacuate the wounded and rotate the troops on the front line.

Russian drones like"Gerbera" can fly hundreds of kilometers, reaching even those areas that until recently were considered relatively safe. Their goal is not only to demolish defense lines, but also to"intimidate the civilian population", says Sergeant Pjasetski.

- They systematically destroy civilian objects. They want to weaken morale and undermine our confidence in Ukraine's ability to stop the Russians - he concluded.