Putin Hints at U.S.-Russia Nuclear Deal as Alaska Summit with Trump Nears

Russian President Vladimir Putin has signaled that Moscow and Washington could negotiate a new nuclear arms control agreement as part of broader efforts to end the ongoing war in Ukraine. Speaking to senior ministers and security officials, Putin praised the United States for making what he described as “energetic and sincere efforts” to bring the conflict to a close, ahead of his much-anticipated meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump in Anchorage, Alaska.

Putin said the talks could go beyond Ukraine’s battlefield to address strategic stability, including the future of the New START treaty, the last remaining nuclear arms control pact between the two nations. The treaty, which caps deployed strategic warheads at 1,550 per side, is set to expire on February 5 next year. Without renewal or replacement, both countries would be free to expand their nuclear arsenals for the first time in decades.

The Anchorage summit will be the first direct meeting between the Russian and U.S. presidents since June 2021 and comes at a time of high tension. Earlier this month, Trump ordered two U.S. nuclear submarines to move closer to Russia following remarks by former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev suggesting that war between the two nations was possible. The Kremlin downplayed the move but cautioned against escalating nuclear rhetoric.

Putin’s foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov said the meeting will begin at 11:30 a.m. local time and will feature a one-on-one discussion between the leaders, followed by a working lunch with their delegations. The Russian side will include Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, Defence Minister Andrei Belousov, Finance Minister Anton Siluanov, and Kirill Dmitriev, Putin’s special envoy for investment and economic cooperation.

While Ukraine is expected to dominate the agenda, Ushakov stressed that the summit would also cover broader security, trade, and economic issues, pointing to “huge untapped potential” in U.S.-Russia economic relations. Moscow is likely to propose easing certain sanctions in exchange for security concessions, though the U.S. position on such trade-offs remains unclear.

The backdrop to these talks is complex: Russia and the U.S. hold over 90% of the world’s nuclear weapons, and any breakdown in arms control could spark a new global arms race. At the same time, Washington is balancing support for Ukraine with a growing domestic push—led by Trump—to end the war quickly through direct diplomacy with Moscow.

Analysts say the Alaska summit could be a turning point. If both sides find common ground on nuclear arms limits and a Ukraine ceasefire, it could mark the first significant U.S.-Russia détente in more than a decade. But if talks falter, the world could face a renewed period of strategic rivalry and heightened nuclear risk.