Trump warns of 'severe consequences' if Putin does not agree to stop war
after summit
[August 14, 2025]
By GEIR MOULSON and SYLVIE CORBET
BERLIN (AP) — President Donald Trump warned Wednesday that there will be
“very severe consequences” if Russian President Vladimir Putin does not
agree to stop the war against Ukraine after the two leaders meet for a
summit later this week in Alaska.
Trump made the comment in response to a question from a reporter after
announcing this year’s Kennedy Center Honors recipients in Washington.
He did not say what the consequences might be.
The remark came soon after Trump consulted with European leaders, who
said the president assured them he would make a priority of trying to
achieve a ceasefire in Ukraine when he speaks with Putin on Friday in
Anchorage.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy joined several of Kyiv's main
allies in the virtual meeting with the U.S. leader, and Zelenskyy told
the group that Putin “is bluffing” ahead of the planned summit about
Russia's ability to occupy all of Ukraine and shake off sanctions.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said afterward that “important
decisions” could be made in Alaska, but he stressed that “fundamental
European and Ukrainian security interests must be protected.”
Merz convened Wednesday's meeting in an attempt to make sure European
and Ukrainian leaders are heard ahead of the summit.
He stressed that a ceasefire must come at the beginning of negotiations.
He told reporters that Trump “also wants to make this one of his
priorities” in the meeting with Putin.
At a separate appearance in France, French President Emmanuel Macron
said Trump “was very clear" that the U.S. wants to achieve a ceasefire
at the summit.
Following Friday's summit, Macron added, Trump will “seek a future
trilateral meeting” — one involving Trump, Putin and Zelenskyy. He said
he hoped that it could be held in Europe "in a neutral country that is
acceptable to all parties.”
Merz, who described Wednesday's conversation as “constructive and good,”
said the Europeans made clear that “Ukraine must sit at the table as
soon as there are follow-up meetings.”
European allies have pushed for Ukraine’s involvement in any peace
talks, fearful that discussions that exclude Kyiv could otherwise favor
Moscow.
The Ukrainian president, who traveled to Berlin to join the meeting
alongside Merz, has repeatedly cast doubt on whether Putin would
negotiate in good faith. He said Wednesday that he hoped an immediate
ceasefire will be “the central topic” in Alaska, but also argued that
Putin "definitely does not want peace.”
Zelenskyy said Putin “is trying to apply pressure ... on all sectors of
the Ukrainian front” in an attempt to show that Russia is “capable of
occupying all of Ukraine.” Putin is also bluffing that sanctions “do not
matter to him and are ineffective," he added. “In reality, sanctions are
very helpful and are hitting Russia’s war economy hard.”
The stakes for Europe
Trump has said he wants to see whether Putin is serious about ending the
war, now in its fourth year, describing Friday's summit as "a feel-out
meeting” where he can assess the Russian leader's intentions.
Yet Trump has disappointed allies in Europe by saying Ukraine will have
to give up some Russian-held territory. He has also said Russia must
accept land swaps, although it was unclear what Putin might be expected
to surrender.
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Ukrainian servicemen of the 15th Army Corps stand by an armed pickup
truck during night duty in the Chernihiv region, Ukraine, late
Tuesday, Aug. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Dan Bashakov)
Trump on Monday ducked repeated chances to say that he would push
for Zelenskyy to take part in his discussions with Putin, and the
president was dismissive of Zelenskyy and his need to be part of an
effort to seek peace. Trump said that following Friday's summit, a
meeting between the Russian and Ukrainian leaders could be arranged,
or that it could also be a meeting with “Putin and Zelenskyy and
me.”
The Europeans and Ukraine are wary that Putin, who has waged the
biggest land war in Europe since 1945 and used Russia’s energy might
to try to intimidate the European Union, might secure favorable
concessions and set the outlines of a peace deal without them.
The overarching fear of many European countries is that Putin will
set his sights on one of them next if he wins in Ukraine.
Merz said that “if there is no movement on the Russian side in
Alaska, then the United States and the Europeans should and must
increase the pressure” on Moscow.
Land concessions a non-starter for Kyiv
Zelenskyy said Tuesday that Putin wants Ukraine to withdraw from the
remaining 30% of the Donetsk region that it still controls as part
of a ceasefire deal, a proposal the Ukrainian leader categorically
rejected.
Zelenskyy reiterated that Ukraine would not give up any territory it
controls, saying that would be unconstitutional and would serve only
as a springboard for a future Russian invasion.
He said diplomatic discussions led by the U.S. focused on ending the
war have not addressed key Ukrainian demands, including security
guarantees to prevent future Russian aggression and ensuring that
Europe is included in negotiations.
Three weeks after Trump returned to office, his administration took
the leverage of Ukraine’s NATO membership off the table — something
Putin has demanded — and signaled that the EU and Ukraine must
handle security in Europe now while America focuses its attention
elsewhere.
Senior EU officials believe Trump may be satisfied with simply
securing a ceasefire in Ukraine and that he is probably more
interested in broader U.S. interests and great power politics,
aiming to ramp up business with Russia and rehabilitate Putin.
Russian advances in Donbas
Russian forces on the ground in Ukraine have been closing in on a
key territorial grab around the city of Pokrovsk, in the eastern
Donbas region that comprises Ukraine’s eastern industrial heartland,
which Putin has long coveted.
Military analysts using open-source information to monitor the
battles have said Ukraine's ability to fend off those advances could
be critical. Losing Pokrovsk would hand Russia an important victory
ahead of the summit and could complicate Ukrainian supply lines to
the Donetsk region, where the Kremlin has focused the bulk of
military efforts.
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Corbet reported from Paris. Associated Press writers Annie Ma in
Washington, Lorne Cook in Brussels, Samya Kullab in Kyiv, Ukraine,
and Stefanie Dazio in Berlin contributed to this report.
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