ANALYSIS — President Donald Trump and some top aides have spent the week downplaying expectations for his Friday summit in Alaska with Russian President Vladimir Putin, even as he on Wednesday called the session a “very important meeting” that must produce “great things.”
The administration’s often-shifting objectives for the meeting were summed up by Trump on Wednesday, when he said a final agreement would not come Friday but then also warned Russia of “very severe consequences” if he returns to Washington without a deal.
During a Thursday morning interview on “The Brian Kilmeade Show” on Fox News Radio, Trump predicted Putin would “make a deal.” But moments later, he said of the summit: “I don’t know if we’re going to get an immediate ceasefire,” before forecasting there is a “25 percent chance” the meeting could be a strategic failure.
