By Olivier Acuña Barba •
Published: 13 Aug 2025 • 23:14
• 2 minutes read
There’s no telling what Trump would do if he were alone with Putin negotiating peace in Ukraine | Credit: Rawpixel.com/Shutterstock
While European leaders are warning that Donald Trump in a room alone with Vladimir Putin is a recipe for disaster, the US president warned his Russian counterpart that there will be “severe consequences” if he does not commit to peace in Ukraine.
The meeting is not for another two days, on August 15th in Alaska, so, in the meantime, Putin has ordered his military to continue advancing and attacking Ukraine.
In fact, in the lead-up to the peace talks, which nobody seems to have any hope for, Russian forces have continued making a sharp thrust into eastern Ukraine in what may be an attempt to increase the pressure on Kyiv to give up land.
However, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has adamantly said that giving up any land to Russia is entirely out of the question, saying that Moscow would use any territory to launch an even fiercer war on Ukraine in the near future.
‘I don’t have to say’ which, but there will be
Asked what those severe consequences would be, Trump did not specify any, but he has in the past warned of economic sanctions if a meeting between himself and President Putin in Alaska on Friday proved fruitless, according to a Reuters report on August 13th.
“Yes, there will be severe consequences,” Trump reiterated, as viraltrendingcontent reported on August 13th, as well. However, asked if they would be in the way of tariffs, Trump told reporters, “I don’t have to say, there will be very severe consequences.”
Following a meeting with European leaders with Trump, French President Emmanuel Macron said it was positive.
“President Trump was very clear that the United States wanted to achieve a ceasefire at this meeting in Alaska,” Macron said. “The second point on which things were very clear, as expressed by President Trump, is that territories belonging to Ukraine cannot be negotiated and will only be negotiated by the Ukrainian president.”
Putin is bluffing
Russia is likely to resist any of Ukraine and Europe’s demands, and previously said its stance had not changed since Putin set it out in June 2024, Reuters added.
“I told the U.S. president and all our European colleagues that Putin is bluffing (about his stated wish to end the war),” Zelenskiy said, according to CNN.
“He is trying to apply pressure before the meeting in Alaska along all parts of the Ukrainian front. Russia is trying to show that it can occupy all of Ukraine,” he added.
As conditions for a ceasefire and the start of peace negotiations, Kremlin leader Alexei Fadeev had demanded that Ukraine withdraw its forces from four regions that Russia has claimed as its own but does not fully control, and formally renounce its plans to join NATO.
Kyiv swiftly rejected the conditions as tantamount to surrender.
Ukrainians want peace, but not at any cost
A Gallup poll released last week revealed that nearly 70 per cent of Ukrainians favour a negotiated end to the war as soon as possible, but they also indicated that they do not want peace at any cost if that means crushing concessions.
In an analysis, the Guardian wrote that previous lessons are clear. “Putting Donald Trump alone in a room with Vladimir Putin is an unpredictable – and often dangerous – affair,” the news outlet wrote. They referred to the US president’s meetings with Putin, who they claim always ends up “dazzling” Trump and convincing him he means no evil.
