Trump-Putin Alaska Meet: Hotels, Cabs Booked Out, Temporary Curbs On Flights

US President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, are scheduled to meet on Friday in Alaska in a high-stakes and high-risk summit that could prove decisive for the future of Ukraine.

The summit is set to take place at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska's largest military installation and a Cold War base for surveillance of the Soviet Union. Mr Putin will step onto Western soil for the first time since he ordered the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, a war that has killed thousands of people so far and on which Russia has not relented, making rapid gains just before the summit.

According to sources, the city is abuzz with several activities, with hotels in the vicinity entirely booked and cab services to and fro from the site hard to avail. 

The federal administration, the sources said, has also placed temporary flight restrictions - likely from 9.30 am local time to 6.45 am local time - on Friday. These curbs, however, are unlikely to have any major impact on commercial flights. 

While Anchorage has played host to the Pope and to former President Ronald Reagan in years past, the summit is "one of the biggest things to happen" in the city, said Dunleavy, a Republican.

Mr Trump is expected to land at around 10.10 am local time and Mr Putin is likely to arrive 50 minutes later. The meeting, so far, is scheduled to begin at around 11.30am. This is likely to be followed by a press conference, either by both the leaders or Mr Trump. 

The US President has voiced admiration for his Russian counterpart in the past and faced some of the most intense criticism of his political career after a 2018 summit in which he appeared cowed and accepted the latter's denials of US intelligence findings that Russia interfered in the 2016 US election.

Before his return to the White House, Mr Trump boasted of his relationship with Mr Putin, blamed predecessor Joe Biden for the war and vowed to bring peace within 24 hours.

But despite repeated calls to Mr Putin, and a stunning February 28 White House meeting in which Mr Trump publicly berated Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, the Russian leader has shown no signs of compromise.

Mr Trump has acknowledged his frustration with Mr Putin and warned of "very severe consequences" if he does not accept a ceasefire -- but also agreed to see him in Alaska.

Adding to the historical significance, the US bought Alaska in 1867 from Russia - a deal Moscow has cited to show the legitimacy of land swaps.

The Kremlin said it expected Mr Putin and Mr Trump to meet alone with interpreters before a working lunch with aides.

(With inputs from agencies)