NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said that the upcoming meeting between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska will be an important test and will help assess the Kremlin's readiness to end the war in Ukraine.

Rutte said this on Sunday in an interview on the ABC News channel, Ukrinform reports.

Next Friday will be important because it will be a test for Putin of how serious he is about ending this terrible war... It will be about security guarantees, of course, but also about the absolute need to recognize that Ukraine decides its own future, that Ukraine must be a sovereign state that decides its own geopolitical future, Rutte emphasized.

In his opinion, Trump also supports these conditions.

"The President (Trump – ed.) wants to put an end to this. He wants to put an end to the terrible loss of life," the NATO Secretary General said.

He also noted that the question will be how to move forward after the ceasefire, including what that means in terms of security guarantees for Ukraine.

As Ukrinform reported, Donald Trump intends to meet with Vladimir Putin on August 15 in Alaska.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that Ukraine is ready for real solutions that can bring peace, but Ukrainians will not give their land to invaders.

Zelensky stressed that Russian President Vladimir Putin wants to exchange a pause in the war for legalizing the occupation of part of Ukraine's territory, but everyone sees his tactics clearly and understands that he is afraid of sanctions and wants to exchange a pause in the war and killings for legalizing the occupation of Ukrainian land.

According to NBC News, The White House is considering inviting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to Alaska next Friday, August 15.

In a joint statement, the leaders of European countries stated that the current contact line should be the starting point for negotiations on achieving peace in Ukraine, and that Ukraine should receive reliable security guarantees after negotiations, in which Ukraine should participate with the support of European partners.