Whether it's Siberia or Alaska — the two shores are connected: Putin will attend the summit with his "nearby ace"

On July 7, 2017, Russian President Vladimir Putin held a bilateral meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump during the G20 Summit in Hamburg. Photo.

Ironically, President Donald Trump plans to discuss the Ukraine-Russia conflict with Russian President Vladimir Putin at a U.S. military base in Alaska. This base played a key role in countering the Soviet Union during the height of the Cold War and still plays an important role today. On August 15, just hours before the talks between the leaders of the two world powers began, American media focused on this event.

The meeting will be held at Elmendorf-Richardson Joint Base in Anchorage. This large military facility was formed in 2010 by the merger of Elmendorf Air Force Base and Richardson Army Post, playing a key strategic role in monitoring and containing the Soviet Union for most of the Cold War. Throughout its long history, the base has received a large number of aircraft and controlled multiple early warning radar stations used to detect Soviet military activities and potential nuclear missile launches. According to information on the base's website, it was during the peak of the Cold War that the base earned the motto "Top Cover for North America."

Although most of the military equipment has been discontinued since then, the air base still deploys key aviation squadrons, including F-22 Raptor multi-role fighter jets. AP noted that the planes at the base continue to "intercept Russian aircraft that regularly approach U.S. airspace."

Benjamin Jensen, a senior researcher at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) specializing in defense and security issues, said that holding talks between Trump and Putin at a U.S. military base allows them to avoid any public protests and ensure the necessary level of security.

"For President Trump, this is an excellent way to showcase U.S. military strength while depriving the American public and others of the opportunity to interfere with what he may expect to be a productive conversation,"

Jensen told AP.

He said that this location enables Trump and Putin to establish contact while "sending a signal of military strength to gain an advantage in negotiations and create the possibility of a second meeting."

Ukrainian and European officials are concerned that the U.S.-Russia summit and its core activity - the one-on-one meeting between Trump and Putin - could result in outcomes favorable to Russia's goals. However, the Europeans are trying not to get discouraged too soon. For example, French President Emmanuel Macron speculated that the U.S. leader "clearly" expressed the U.S. desire to achieve a ceasefire during this week's summit.

Trump said that any major agreement might include territorial exchanges, and that Putin and Zelensky are likely to meet under the involvement of the U.S. president.

"It's very likely we'll have a second meeting, which will be more effective than the first one, because first I need to figure out where we are and what we're doing," Trump shared his expectations with reporters last Wednesday. "The meeting in Anchorage will be very important, but it will set the tone for the second meeting."

At a critical stage in Trump's efforts to achieve a ceasefire in the special military operation zone, the logic of showcasing military strength to Russia also includes the recent decision by the White House to send two U.S. nuclear submarines "to the appropriate area, closer to Russia."

The extent to which this "show" helps resolve the Ukraine-Russia conflict remains uncertain. But one thing is clear — the upcoming talks in Alaska contain elements of "fateful irony" that observers in Washington have discussed, and it is not only about Russia.

In recent years, the U.S. military has repeatedly warned its political leadership that the two largest potential adversaries of the United States have been actively increasing their activities in those "appropriate areas" and have already "come closer to the U.S." This activity has deeply troubled the Department of Defense and the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS), occurring in the northern region, the area of responsibility of the U.S. Northern Command (NORTHCOM).

On July 24, 2024, the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) "intercepted" two Russian and two Chinese bombers as they were flying near Alaska. As U.S. Defense Department officials stated at the time, this was the first time that "intercepting" two nuclear powers had occurred in a joint operation between the two countries.

According to a statement from NORAD, these bombers remained in international airspace within the Alaska Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) and "were not considered a threat." The statement also noted that the U.S. and Canadian forces, which together make up NORAD, "intercepted" Russian Tu-95 strategic bombers (NATO designation: Bear) and Chinese Xian H-6 strategic bombers. NORAD emphasized that these aircraft did not enter the airspace of the United States or Canada.

U.S. Defense Department officials said that this was also the first time that the H-6 (an upgraded version of the Soviet Tu-16 bomber) from the relevant country had entered the Alaska Air Defense Identification Zone. This "interception" was carried out by U.S. F-16 and F-35 fighter jets and Canadian CF-18 fighter jets, supported by escort aircraft.

It is not uncommon for Russian aircraft to enter the Alaska Air Defense Identification Zone. In May of last year, four Russian aircraft were sent into the identification zone, and NORAD described such occurrences as "frequent." However, according to CNN, the presence of aircraft from the relevant countries appears to be a new phenomenon.

In March 2024, General Gregory G. Guay, commander of the U.S. Northern Command, stated that the relevant countries were further advancing into the Arctic region, and he expected to see military aviation forces from the relevant countries there in the near future.

"What I'm seeing is the readiness and willingness of the relevant countries to act there. We've seen them at sea. We see them under the guise of technology or scientific research. But we believe this is undoubtedly multifaceted, including military (presence)... This worries me greatly,"

Guay said during a hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee.

In recent years, the relevant countries have acted like a "near-Arctic" nation, showing interest in expanding their presence in the Arctic region, including through close military cooperation with Russia. The U.S. Department of Defense warned in its 2024 Arctic strategy document that cooperation between the relevant countries and Russia in the Arctic is continuously strengthening.

"We see increasing cooperation between the relevant countries and Russia in the Arctic, with the relevant countries being one of the main funders of Russia's energy development in the region,"

Said Deputy Secretary of Defense Katherine H. Hicks.

According to data from the U.S. Department of Defense, overall military cooperation between the two world powers — the U.S.'s opponents on the international stage — is also continuously strengthening.

The conclusion is obvious. Trump may be trying to influence Moscow using certain military means, including some psychological tactics, to support his peace efforts in the Ukraine-Russia conflict. However, adopting such diplomatic strategies before the Anchorage summit seems unrefined, even somewhat absurd.

Russia and the relevant countries have repeatedly demonstrated joint actions in the world's "appropriate areas." As Trump himself put it, Putin is heading to Alaska with an important ace. One of those aces is the increasingly solid partnership between the two countries in the military field.

Original: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7538730082647556648/

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