Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin met on Friday at a U.S. military base in Alaska to talk about ending the war in Ukraine and creating a new arms control agreement. Their meeting comes while Ukraine and its European allies worry Trump might agree to terms not including Ukraine.

Earlier in the week, Trump spoke with Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskiy and said Ukraine should be part of any future talks involving land or security deals. Putin, under pressure from Western sanctions, hinted he would consider a partial halt to air strikes, but still had strict demands like keeping control of captured territories and stopping Ukraine from joining NATO.

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Trump floated the idea of a future three-way meeting with Putin and Zelenskiy. He also said he’d know quickly if any deal with Russia was possible. Experts warn that Putin might use this summit to ease sanctions while keeping options to escalate the conflict.

This summit is high-stakes: for Trump, it’s a chance to look like a global peacemaker; for Putin, it’s an opening to break diplomatic isolation and ease sanctions. Though Trump said the talks could pave the way for future discussions with Ukraine’s president, Zelenskiy wasn’t there, leaving many uneasy.

A successful agreement could mark the first step toward peace; a bad outcome might embolden Russian advances and weaken Western unity.