Posted on 08/10/2025 11:54:13 AM PDT by E. Pluribus Unum
Russian president secures first official invitation to US in almost two decades ahead of sanctions deadline
Alaska, the venue set for Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump’s meeting on Friday, could hardly be more symbolic of the Kremlin’s view of the world.
Unlike Putin’s military seizure of about a fifth of Ukraine, Russia’s 19th-century sale of Alaska to the US under Emperor Alexander II was a peaceful transaction. Still, it serves as a reminder that national borders are not set in stone, and land can be a currency for statecraft.
Neither the battlefield balance nor budget strains are forcing the Russian president to scale back his maximalist territorial ambitions or consider unfavourable peace terms, according to analysts.
His focus instead is on keeping communication open with Trump, lest the US president’s frustrations with Moscow start to carry a cost. “Putin has no incentive to wind down the war right now,” said Alexandra Prokopenko, a fellow at the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Centre. “What matters to him is keeping Trump’s attention.”
On that front, Moscow was facing more risk. Trump, who came to office promising to end the war within 24 hours, has voiced irritation with Putin being “very nice” while simultaneously attacking Ukraine and feeding Washington “a lot of bullshit”. For the first time since taking office, Trump has begun enabling more significant transfers of weaponry to Kyiv, and threatening to apply tariffs on India for buying Russian oil.
But this impatient mood shifted almost overnight after US special envoy Steve Witkoff’s visit to Moscow last Wednesday — just two days before Trump’s ceasefire-or-sanctions deadline. Rather than more trouble for the Kremlin, what emerged was Putin’s first invitation to America to meet a US president since he saw George W Bush in 2007.
The Alaska meeting, which came out of it...
(Excerpt) Read more at ft.com ...
I love all the made up analysis.
Meeting anywhere on earth would demonstrate that borders have never been set in stone.
There seems to be a paywall at the site. I was unable to access the article.
“Putin has no incentive to wind down the war right now”
Dear Russian Mother:
It is with deep regret that I write of your brave son’s loss of life fighting for the Russian people....
Hostile action should only be taken by necessity.
Putin and Trump can behave civilly towards each other, discussing possible peace deal terms in a calm and rational manner.
Civility should not be confused with anything else.
“very nice”
It’s called civility, a commodity that is not always present on this site.
“ Meeting anywhere on earth would demonstrate that borders have never been set in stone.”
Sell Alaska to Russia for $37 Trillion.
To keep the parts of Ukraine it has and a fair bit more, a Russia friendly government, no Ukraine military and Alaska back. More after the Russia economy recovers, the military rearms, then San Francisco back.
You really enjoy makin’ siht up, don’t ya?
Just to annoy Putin trolls like yourself
Hope doesnt give away Alaska to Putin. He has already given away the store on Ukraine so hopefully the state of Alaska doesnt follow.
But if he does, it will be “The Art of the Deal” or “three dimensional chess” to all the Putin groupies on FR
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