Trump and Putin Summit on Ukraine Underway
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What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
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President Trump and Vladimir Putin meet in Alaska, beginning their much-awaited summit about Ukraine. Plus, why economists suspect inflation isn't surging despite high tariffs.
The real effective tariff rate is significantly lower than what they would have thought based on just the announcement of the headline tariffs and all the averages.
And how the relaxation of fuel economy rules is making EV company Rivian face a $100 million hole. It's Friday, August 15th. I'm Alex Osola for The Wall Street Journal. This is the PM edition of What's News, the top headlines and business stories that move the world today. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. The summit, if successful, could pave the way for future talks between Putin, Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to end more than three years of fighting that has claimed tens of thousands of lives. Though it was initially supposed to be a one-on-one between Trump and Putin, White House Press Secretary Caroline Leavitt announced shortly before the meeting that it would now include two advisers for each leader –
For Trump, that's Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Special Envoy Steve Witkoff. For Putin, it's Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Foreign Policy Advisor Yuri Yushakov. For more, I'm joined now by WSJ West Coast correspondent Jim Carlton, who is on the ground in Anchorage. Jim, what's the vibe there? What is it like?
There's actually quite a bit of excitement in the air. I was lucky enough to watch the leaders come in from their respective planes. And even though there were people that don't like Donald Trump and there are people that don't like Putin, obviously, together, I think there was like goosebumps. Like, this is very historic. They met at the base, Putin and Trump, very friendly.
What is happening at the Trump–Putin summit in Alaska right now?
And then the two leaders got into the presidential car, which is nicknamed the Beast, to go for a private ride. That doesn't happen every day. There's caution, obviously. This is a very difficult problem to solve, but I think that there is optimism.
What did each leader say going into this meeting? Where did they stand?
President Trump knows that he can't do this alone. He can't just do this unilaterally without Ukraine having some input. So he is working with Ukraine and the European Union on what they like in terms of territory. President Putin, he's not saying he's going to back off on his demands for to hold the Donbass and the territory that Russia's already seized. But at the same time, he's adding some other things like armed talks, maybe economic cooperation. And so it's hard to say what's really going to happen, though, honestly, because Trump is the consummate dealmaker. And the fact that Putin's come all the way here, 4,000 miles from Moscow, and Trump's come almost the same distance, maybe it means something.
Is this expected to be kind of a long meeting? What is the schedule here?
I think six to seven hours is what I'm hearing it's going to be. I don't hear they're really going to leave the base. It's an interesting base. Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson. There's a lot of wildlife there. They should be careful. There's bears. There's actually a blind bear, nicknamed Blind Betty, that wanders the base. And it's beautiful scenery. I talked to tourists going to Denali National Park, and they were saying it's too bad that Putin and Trump can't go together. Maybe that would help seal the deal.
And I know the meeting started only a short time ago. Now that we're speaking at this time, it's early.
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Chapters
5 chapters
1
What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
0:00–2:36
2
What is happening at the Trump–Putin summit in Alaska right now?
2:36–7:28
3
Who joined the meeting and why was Ukraine left out?
7:28–9:12
4
What is the on‑the‑ground atmosphere in Anchorage as the leaders arrive?
9:12–13:08
5
What did Trump and Putin say about negotiating territory and outcomes?
13:08–14:02
Speakers
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