President Donald Trump has announced plans for a long-awaited face-to-face meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin... but the way he's gone about it is a little odd.
For the best part of a century, the US has been at odds with Russia, despite the two powerhouses having been allies during World War II.
What it means is that sit-downs between the leaders of each nation are few and far between, with the last coming in 2021, when then-President Joe Biden and Putin met on neutral soil in Geneva, Switzerland.
That was in June of that year, prior to Russia's invasion of Ukraine. In terms of Trump and the St. Petersburg-born politician, they last met in Osaka, Japan, in 2019 - with the pair having traveled for the G20 summit.
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Anyway, the 79-year-old took to Truth Social yesterday (August 8) to share the news with the world.
"The highly anticipated meeting between myself, as President of the United States of America, and President Vladimir Putin, of Russia, will take place next Friday, August 15, 2025, in the Great State of Alaska," he posted.
"Further details to follow. Thank you for your attention to this matter!"
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While over on Instagram, he shared a screenshot of his Truth Social post with a picture of him staring dead at the camera with the background blacked out - a pose the likes of Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury would be privy to.
"I like how this is presented as some kinda mega boxing match," one person commented.
Yes, it feels like the Trump administration is billing the meeting as if it were a heavyweight boxing match.
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"It’s like he’s cutting a promo for wwe," another quipped.
With a third joking: "Pay per view!! Where is Don King?!"
Hopefully it will be aired free on national TV - I wouldn't want to pay the box office for a sit-down meeting...
"Biggest bout since Rocky IV," someone else joked.
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While another added: "Only Steve Austin [can] stop him."
The meeting comes as the Republican POTUS' deadline for the Kremlin to make peace with Ukraine arrived yesterday.
Exasperated that Putin did not heed his calls to stop bombing Ukrainian cities, Trump almost two weeks ago moved up his ultimatum to impose additional sanctions on Russia and introduce secondary tariffs targeting countries that buy Russian oil if the Kremlin did not move toward a settlement.
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Trump’s efforts to pressure Putin into stopping the fighting have so far delivered no progress, although he has now landed a face-to-face meeting with him.
Topics: Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin, Russia, Ukraine, Politics, World News
Joe Yates