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PRESIDENT TRUMP took a hardline with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday ahead of their high-stakes summit in Alaska at the end of the week.

Speaking to reporters at the Kennedy Center, Trump promised there would be “severe consequences” if Russia fails to reach a ceasefire deal with Ukraine after the summit.

“There will be consequences,” Trump said. “I don’t have to say. There will be very severe consequences.”

Asked if he believed Putin will stop targeting civilians in Ukraine, Trump responded:

“I've had that conversation with him. I've had a lot of good conversations with him. Then I go home and I see that a rocket hit a nursing home, or a rocket hit an apartment building, and people are laying dead in the street. So I guess the answer to that is no, because I've had this conversation.”

Trump and Vice President Vance met virtually with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and other European leaders Wednesday to strategize ahead of the summit.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz organized the meeting, as European leaders seek a united front to stand against Putin’s land demands and to ensure Ukraine’s future security.

“We have had a very good call,” European Commission President Urusula von der Leyen posted on X.

“Today Europe, the US and NATO have strengthened the common ground for Ukraine,” she continued. “We will remain in close coordination. Nobody wants peace more than us, a just and lasting peace.”

Trump said that after his Friday summit, he hopes to arrange a trilateral meeting with Putin and Zelensky “almost immediately.”

RUSSIAN INCURSION CONTINUES

The Russian military broke through Ukraine’s frontlines in the eastern Donetsk region this week, pushing forward with the new offensive only days before Putin’s meeting with Trump.

Putin also had his own summit with an ally Wednesday, speaking with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un about the “bravery, heroism and self-sacrificing spirit” of the North Korean fighters that have joined Putin’s war efforts, according to North Korea’s official Korean Central News Agency.

Zelensky on Wednesday warned that Putin is “bluffing” about being open to peace.

“I stress that any questions concerning our country’s territorial integrity cannot be discussed without regard for our people, for the will of our people and the Ukrainian constitution,” Zelensky said.

Trump has in recent days taken shots at both Putin and Zelensky, adding an element of uncertainty to the meeting, which will take place at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage.

The president has turned on Putin in recent weeks, authorizing the sale of U.S. defensive munitions to European countries to pass through to Ukraine. Trump has also threatened economic sanctions on Russia’s trading partners, and hit India with steep tariffs for continuing to buy Russian oil.

However, Trump has also lashed out at Zelensky.

The Hill’s Ellen Mitchell writes:

"President Trump’s sharp criticism of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Monday is sending chills across Europe, where leaders are working to guard against the worst-case scenario: Trump aligning with Russian President Vladimir Putin to force a bad deal on Kyiv.”

Trump has said that any deal will have “good stuff, not bad stuff, also some bad stuff for both” parties.

LAND SWAPS

Trump’s talk of land swaps has Kyiv and its European allies on edge, as they fear the president will give Putin a sweetheart deal that carves-up Ukraine.

Zelensky is drawing a red line, saying he won't cede portions of the Donbas region to Russia to achieve a deal.

“We will never leave the Donbas,” Zelensky told reporters, saying Russia would use it as a “springboard for a future new offensive.”

The Hill’s Ashleigh Fields writes:

“Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022 and captured most of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions within Donbas. The Kremlin has already expressed a desire to keep Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson before committing to ending the violent strikes in eastern Europe.”

Trump has so far downplayed expectations for the meeting with Putin.

The White House has described the Putin meeting a “listening session” and a “feel-out meeting.”

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© The Hill