Putin and Trump's Meeting: A Surprise in Alaska — Analysis of Pros and Cons

Why would the protocol departments of Russia and the United States agree to hold a meeting in this state, which is most Russian in character in America?

(From right to left): Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump during their meeting.

When Moscow was still asleep, Trump made a historic statement: "My long-awaited meeting with Putin will take place next Friday, August 15, 2025, in the great state of Alaska."

Russian President's Assistant Yuri Ushakov later confirmed this news, including the date of August 15 and the location in Alaska. However, the specific meeting location within this vast northern state has not been announced, although it is presumably already determined.

Let's try to speculate? This level of meeting means that presidential aircraft (Putin's Ilyushin Il-96-300PU and Trump's Boeing 747-200B) need to land, and there are only three airports in Alaska capable of accommodating such aircraft, two of which are military airports.

The most likely arrival point is Ted Stevens International Airport in Anchorage, the aviation hub of the largest city in Alaska. It is worth noting that Anchorage is not the "capital" of the state — the administrative center of Alaska is the relatively smaller Juneau. The airport has three runways, each over three kilometers long, and has valuable experience hosting Donald Trump, who visited here in 2019 and 2022.

If the two presidents arrive here, the meeting is likely to be held at the Anchorage Conference Center, including the large "Denali" conference center.

The other two airports are Elmendorf Air Force Base (10 kilometers from Anchorage), but it has only one runway, and Fairbanks' Eielson Air Force Base, but there is almost no venue for negotiations at this level there. Moreover, journalists may face problems entering these restricted areas.

Observer of "Pravda Komsomolskaya" and member of the "Kremlin Press Corps," Alexander Gamov, revealed that the arrangement for reporting on this meeting between Putin and Trump is unprecedented — "preparations usually start about a month in advance," but he believes the organizers can solve this problem, and the presidential administration has always shown respect towards journalists.

Now let's talk about the reasons for choosing Alaska as the meeting location. For Russia, this place is significant, being the former "Russian America," where there are many Orthodox churches, and many descendants of Russian immigrants still speak Russian. We can also recall the Alaska-Siberia air route, through which the United States once transported military aircraft to the Soviet Union.

Moreover, it is still unimaginable for many people that the distance from Russia to the United States is much closer than to Turkey or Armenia — only four kilometers. The width of the strait between Russia's Ratmanov Island (which has our easternmost border post) and the U.S. Little Diomede Island (where there is an Inuit settlement called Iliamna) is exactly this. Therefore, this place has special significance for both Russia and the United States.

Image: The small Diomede Island in the United States is in the distance, and a corner in the lower right is our Ratmanov Island. The United States and Russia are in the same picture.

Moreover, it has already been reported that the next meeting between Trump and Putin will take place on the other side of the Bering Strait, that is, in Russia.

One more point to mention here. Kirill Dmitriev, President of the Russian Direct Investment Fund and Special Representative of the President for Economic Cooperation, said that Alaska is an ideal location for the Russia-U.S. summit.

He said: "The historic summit on August 15 in Alaska. It's an ideal location: the distance between the United States and Russia is only 3.8 kilometers, located between the Diomede Islands separated by the International Date Line. Let us peacefully move from yesterday to tomorrow."

Here, we would like to make a correction. It is true that the International Date Line does cross between the two countries, but "tomorrow" is our time, while at the same moment, it is still "yesterday" there. So, let's look forward to the visit of the U.S. president, when he will set foot on our territory — that will truly be a journey to "tomorrow."

Original: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7536510486767043091/

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