India has welcomed the planned meeting between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska on August 15, 2025, calling it a positive step towards ending the war in Ukraine.
In a statement on Saturday, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said, “India welcomes the understanding reached between the United States and the Russian Federation for a meeting in Alaska on 15th August 2025. This meeting holds the promise of bringing to an end the ongoing conflict in Ukraine and opening up prospects for peace. As Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said on several occasions, this is not an era of war.”
The Alaska summit will mark Putin’s first visit to the US since 2015, when he met then-President Barack Obama.
US President Trump announced the meeting on his Truth Social account, describing it as “highly anticipated” and promising further details soon. The Kremlin confirmed the leaders will focus on exploring options for a long-term resolution to the Ukrainian crisis, acknowledging the process will be “challenging” but pledging active engagement.
While in Washington earlier this week for the signing of the Armenia-Azerbaijan peace accord, Trump hinted that a settlement could involve a territorial exchange, saying, “There’ll be some swapping of territories to the betterment of both, but we’ll talk about that later.”
However, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky rejected the idea outright, stating on Telegram, “The answer to Ukraine’s territorial question is already in the constitution of Ukraine. No one will and no one can deviate from it. Ukrainians will not give their land to the occupier.”
Ahead of the summit, Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff met Putin in Moscow for a three-hour discussion, which the US described as “highly productive.”
The diplomatic move comes just days after Trump imposed a 25% tariff on India over its imports of Russian oil, a decision that has added a layer of complexity to US-India ties even as New Delhi supports the peace initiative.
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