Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) hopes that the upcoming meeting between President Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin in her home state will help bring the war in Ukraine to an end.
“This is another opportunity for the Arctic to serve as a venue that brings together world leaders to forge meaningful agreements,” Murkowski posted on the social media platform X. “While I remain deeply wary of Putin and his regime, I hope these discussions lead to genuine progress and help end the war on equitable terms.”
Trump on Friday evening announced on social media that he is slated to meet with Putin to engage in peace talks on Aug. 15 in Alaska.
Earlier in the day, Trump said he would discuss the swapping of territories with Putin, who reportedly floated a ceasefire proposal involving Ukraine making territorial concessions.
The talks come as the president has become increasingly frustrated with Putin in recent months over the over three years long war in Ukraine.
The president previously imposed an Aug. 8 deadline for a ceasefire and threatened to impose additional sanctions on the Russian economy.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was not invited to the Alaska meeting, but Trump said that maybe in the future he could hold a similar event with both world leaders.
Murkowski has long condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
On July 31, she introduced a bill with Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, calling for $50 billion in aid for Ukraine.
When Trump stated that Ukraine started the war this year, she railed against the president, stating it made her “sick to my stomach.”
“I know foreign policy is not for the faint of heart, but right now, I am sick to my stomach as the administration appears to be walking away from our allies and embracing Putin, a threat to democracy and U.S. values around the world,” Murkowski wrote on X in March.
Putin was last on American soil in 2015 for a U.N. summit. Direct talks between the U.S. and Russian president have not been held since 2021, when Putin and former President Biden met in Geneva.
