Can Trump persuade Putin to stop attacking Ukraine civilians? Here's what he said

Ahead of the Alaska summit, US President Donald Trump has admitted he is unlikely to persuade Russian President Vladimir Putin to stop targeting civilians in Ukraine when the two meet at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage next week.

When asked if he thought he could change Putin’s stance, Trump replied bluntly, "Well, I’ll tell you what, I’ve had that conversation with him. I’ve had a lot of good conversations with him. Then I go home and I see that a rocket hit a nursing home or a rocket hit an apartment building and people are lying dead in the streets. So I guess the answer to that is no."

Speaking at the Kennedy Centre in Washington on Wednesday, Trump stressed that, although he wants to end the conflict, the responsibility lies with his predecessor.

"I want to end the war. It’s Biden’s war, but I want to end it. I’ll be very proud to end this war, along with the five other wars I ended," he said.

He emphasised his record on global conflicts, claiming, "If we can save a lot of lives, it will be a great thing. I have stopped five wars in the last six months. On top of that, we wiped out the nuclear capability of Iran, obliterated it."

UKRAINE PEACE TALKS IN THE SPOTLIGHT

The Alaska meeting on August 15 is expected to focus on a possible ceasefire and peace negotiations. Trump has also floated a follow-up summit that would include Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy -- but only if the first meeting delivers progress.

"If the first meeting goes okay, we will have a quick second one but there may be no second meeting because if I feel that it’s not appropriate then we are not going to have a second meeting," he warned.

Trump also signaled that Putin could face consequences if Moscow refuses to halt the war. "Yes. There will be consequences. I don’t have to say (on the type of consequences). There will be very severe consequences," he said.

RUSSIA DEMANDS REMAIN UNCHANGED

However, the Kremlin has shown little sign of softening its stance. Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Alexei Fadeev reiterated that Moscow’s demands remain unchanged since last year.

Russia currently controls 19% of Ukraine -- including all of Crimea and Luhansk, most of Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson, and small parts of Kharkiv, Sumy, Mykolaiv, and Dnipropetrovsk.

"Russia's position remains unchanged, and it was voiced in this very hall just over a year ago, on June 14, 2024," Fadeev said, referring to a speech Putin delivered then at the foreign ministry.

- Ends

With inputs from Reuters

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