Donald Trump has announced that he will meet Vladimir Putin in what is hoped will be key for easing global tensions.
The US president said earlier this week that he would 'probably' meet with the Russian leader, coming after previous attempts to work with the nation to create a peace deal came to no avail.
Trump told reporters at the White House that the road 'continues to be long' when it comes to the situation, but in a on Friday night, the American leader took to social media confirming the meeting had been set up.
Writing on Truth Social, he began: "The highly anticipated meeting between myself, as President of the United States of America, and President Vladimir Putin, of Russia, will take place next Friday, August 15, 2025, in the Great State of Alaska.
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"Further details to follow. Thank you for your attention to this matter!"
In the past few days, Trump claimed that discussions needed to be had with Ukraine, with a key demand being territory swaps.
"Well, you're looking at territory that's been fought over for 3 1/2 years ... you know, a lot of Russians have died. A lot of Ukrainians have died," he began.
"So we're looking at that, but we're actually looking to get some back," Trump said, adding that while 'it's complicated', his goal is to 'get some [territories] switched'.
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He stated: "There'll be some swapping of territories to the betterment of both, but we'll be talking about that either later or tomorrow."
Those close to Russia have hinted that giving up territory could be on the cards across the four regions they claim to have annexed.
Trump insisted that his focus was on 'saving lives', claiming: "I think if we didn't come, Ukraine and Russia would have ended up being a World War, and I stopped that."
What has Volodymyr Zelenskyy said?
While Trump has made it all sound quite straightforward, it probably won't be, given Zelenskyy's response to reports on Saturday (8 August) about a territorial 'swap'.
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He warned that any pact which was agreed without his approval would be 'stillborn decisions against peace'.
Speaking in a video, the Ukrainian leader claimed: "Any decisions that are against us, any decisions that are without Ukraine, are at the same time decisions against peace. They will not achieve anything.
"These are stillborn decisions. They are unworkable decisions. And we all need real and genuine peace. Peace that people will respect."
He then took to Twitter to address the upcoming summit between Trump and Putin in Alaska, adding that the war 'can't be ended without us, without Ukraine'.
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Zelenskyy went on: "Putin did not believe in our people and therefore made the hopeless decision to try to take Ukraine.
"This was his main mistake—not taking Ukrainians into account. I believe in our people. Ukrainians are strong. Ukrainians defend what’s theirs."
Despite stating that 'Russia is doing evil', he also stated his intent to work with the US to achieve peace.
"We are ready to work together with President Trump, together with all our partners for real and, most importantly, lasting peace," Zelenskyy stated.
"A peace that will not collapse because of Moscow’s desires."
Topics: Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin, Ukraine, Russia, Volodymyr Zelenskyy
Joshua Nair