Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin will sit face-to-face for the first time in seven years on Friday for talks aimed at ending the war in Ukraine.
The Russian president will fly into Anchorage, the largest city in Alaska, where he will meet his US counterpart at a remote military installation which plays host to some of America’s most fearsome fighter jets. It has been visited by several US presidents in the past.
Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska’s largest military base, combines the Air Force’s Elmendorf base with the US Army’s Fort Richardson.
Though Kyiv and its European allies will hope that the talks lead to a breakthrough in ending the conflict, there are fears that the US president will propose that Ukraine cedes part of its territory to Russia as part of a peace deal – despite Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky not being present at the summit.
What do we know about Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson?
The mission of the base is to defend US interests in the Asia-Pacific region. It had strategic importance during the Cold War as the closest point between Alaska and Russia, lying just 4.8km (3 miles) apart.
It is home to more than 32,000 people; roughly 10 per cent of Anchorage’s population.
According to the Library of Congress, it was regarded as "particularly important" in defending the US against the former Soviet Union.
Elmendorf-Richardson is also situated in a historically significant area for Russia. In 1867, the Russian Empire sold Alaska to the US.
There are concerns that the Russian president may invoke the sale of Alaska to prove his belief that land can be exchanged and partitioned by the world’s great powers.
"It's easy to imagine Putin making the argument during his meetings with Trump that, 'Well, look, territories can change hands,'" Nigel Gould-Davies, former British ambassador to Belarus, said according to Sky News.
"'We gave you Alaska. Why can't Ukraine give us a part of its territory?'"
Who has visited in the past?
The military base has received a number of visits from multiple presidents in the 21st century.
It is Trump’s first visit to Alaska since his second term began in January 2025, but during his first term he made a number of visits to Elmendorf-Richardson.
Barack Obama visited in 2015 and during a three-day stay he became the first US president to set foot north of the Arctic Circle.
In 2023 Joe Biden visited the base for a remembrance ceremony for the 9/11 terrorist attack in 2001.
What to expect from the talks
Russian and American delegations have arrived in Alaska ahead of the talks later on Friday, with Trump’s ceasefire hopes uncertain, but with a last gasp offer from Mr Putin of a possible nuclear deal that could help both men save face.
Trump insisted the Russian president was “not going to mess around with me” ahead of the first meeting between the two leaders since 2018, saying he thinks both “will make peace”.
He has said that, if the talks go well, he will set up a subsequent three-way summit with Zelensky – who was not invited to Friday’s meeting.
Putin, whose war economy is showing signs of strain, needs Trump to help Russia break out of ever-tightening Western sanctions, or at the very least not hit Moscow with more sanctions.
