From: Transform Ukraine By Douglas Landro / August 14, 2025
The Alaska Gambit: Trump’s Last-Ditch Diplomacy as Putin Demands Ukraine’s SurrenderWith Just Two Days Before the Historic Alaska Summit, Russian Officials Declare Unchanging War Objectives While Ukrainian Forces Launch Strategic Counteroffensives Across Multiple Fronts
Summary of the Day – August 13, 2025
Two days before the most consequential diplomatic encounter since the war began, the chasm between Russia’s unchanging demands for Ukraine’s capitulation and America’s growing commitment to Ukrainian sovereignty has never been clearer. While Russian officials reiterated that Moscow’s objectives in Ukraine remain “unchanged” since Putin’s June 2024 ultimatum—demanding complete Ukrainian withdrawal from four oblasts, denazification, and alliance neutrality—President Trump clarified that the United States will pursue no agreements without an immediate ceasefire and Ukraine’s formal participation. Meanwhile, Ukrainian forces scored tactical victories in Sumy and Zaporizhzhia oblasts, even as Russian sabotage groups penetrated deeper toward Pokrovsk. The diplomatic stakes could not be higher: Europe fears being sold out, Ukraine demands territorial integrity, and Russia shows no signs of genuine peace-seeking as it prepares to produce 79,000 Shahed drones in 2025.
Putin’s Unchanging Ultimatum: Russia Rejects Any Territorial Concessions
Russian Foreign Ministry Deputy Director Alexei Fadeev delivered a stark reminder on August 13 that Moscow’s position remains “unchanged” since Putin’s June 14, 2024 speech outlining Russia’s uncompromising demands. Those demands—Ukraine’s complete withdrawal from Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson oblasts, including areas Russia doesn’t currently occupy, along with “denazification” and “demilitarization”—amount to nothing less than Ukraine’s complete capitulation.
“The goals for Russia’s delegation to the Alaska summit are defined exclusively by national interests,” Fadeev stated, implying Russia will not consider any territorial concessions. The Kremlin’s hardened stance arrives as Moscow attempts to project equality with the United States at the August 15 summit, with leading Russian negotiator Kirill Dmitriev comparing the meeting to the 1945 Yalta Conference and claiming Putin and Trump will “prevent World War III.”
These grandiose comparisons reveal Russia’s desperation to present itself as a global power equal to the United States, despite the reality that this bilateral meeting will produce no agreements about Ukraine’s future without Kyiv’s participation.
Trump’s Red Lines: No Deals Without Ukraine at the Table
The Trump administration has drawn clear boundaries around the Alaska summit that directly contradict Russian expectations. Following a virtual summit with European leaders and President Zelensky on August 13, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz confirmed that Trump “reaffirmed that Trump would not negotiate territorial issues with Putin.”
French President Emmanuel Macron revealed the president’s position with striking clarity: “territorial issues that fall under Ukraine’s jurisdiction cannot be negotiated and will only be negotiated by the Ukrainian president.” Trump warned there will be “very severe consequences” if Putin refuses to engage in serious peace talks after Alaska, though he declined to specify what those consequences might entail.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent signaled the administration’s leverage, stating that sanctions against Russia could be increased or loosened depending on the summit’s outcome, while urging European allies to prepare harsher measures should diplomacy fail.
Europe’s United Front: Security Guarantees Without NATO
European leaders emerged from their August 13 call with Trump having secured significant commitments, despite concerns about being sidelined. Most notably, Trump agreed that the United States will provide Ukraine with security guarantees once peace is established—but ruled out NATO membership as part of those guarantees.
Voice of Ukraine 