WASHINGTON ― President Donald Trump likened his upcoming high-stakes Alaska summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin to a "chess game" while predicting there's a "25% chance" the meeting could fail to advance peace talks between Russia and Ukraine.
Trump, in an Aug. 14 interview with conservative talk show host Brian Kilmeade on Fox News Radio, said he hopes his one-on-one meeting with Putin will lead to a second meeting between himself, Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, where the two sides can hammer out details for a peace deal.
"It’s like a chess game," Trump said. "This meeting sets up the second meeting, but there is a 25% chance that this meeting will not be a successful meeting."
More: Trump-Putin meeting: Sprawling Army base that has hosted dignitaries is backdrop for talks
Trump suggested that Russia and Ukraine could "divvy things up" ‒ including land and boundaries ‒ during a second meeting, which has yet to be scheduled or agreed upon. Zelenskyy and Ukraine's European allies have stood firmly against Ukraine ceding significant territory seized by Russia in its three-year war on Ukraine.
