The diplomatic efforts that led to the Trump-Putin meeting on Ukraine

Russian President Vladimir Putin is set to meet U.S. President Donald Trump in Alaska on Friday, the latest development in the months-long effort by Trump to end the Ukraine war.

The hastily arranged meeting between Putin and Trump will be the first U.S.-Russia summit since former President Joe Biden met with the Kremlin leader in 2021. There’s no guarantee a Trump-Putin meeting would lead to the end of the fighting, however, since Moscow and Kyiv remain far apart on their conditions for peace.

Key events that shaped efforts to end the war since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022:

Feb. 28, 2022: Ukrainian and Russian delegations meet in neighboring Belarus for the first time since the invasion. Talks continue for the next two weeks, but no agreements emerge other than a decision to set up humanitarian corridors for civilians.

March 21, 2022: Zelenskyy calls for direct talks with Putin but is rebuffed by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. A day later, Zelenskyy says he is prepared to discuss a commitment for Ukraine to not to seek NATO membership in exchange for a ceasefire, the withdrawal of Russian troops and a guarantee of Ukraine’s security.

March 29, 2022: Talks begin in Istanbul, with Moscow saying it’s willing to “fundamentally cut back” military activity near Kyiv and the northern city of Chernihiv. Kyiv said it was open to discussing neutral status for Ukraine if its security is backed by other nations.

April 7, 2022: Lavrov rejects a Ukrainian peace proposal as “unacceptable.” He says Kyiv has walked back on an agreement to exempt the Crimean Peninsula from wider Ukrainian security guarantees. Russia illegally annexed Crimea in 2014.

July 22, 2022: Russia and Ukraine, with mediation by Turkey and the U.N., agree on a deal to unblock supplies of grain stuck in Ukraine’s Black Sea ports, ending a standoff that threatened global food security. The deal expires a year later.

Sept. 30, 2022: Russia illegally annexes the Ukrainian regions of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson, even though it doesn’t fully control any of them. Ukraine responds by applying to join NATO and by enacting a decree that declares negotiations with Putin “impossible.”

Dec. 7, 2024: U.S. President-elect Donald Trump meets Zelenskyy and other European leaders in Paris.

Feb 12. 2025: Trump and Putin agree to begin negotiations on ending the Ukraine war in a phone call that ends a three-year U.S.-led effort to isolate Russia over Ukraine.

Feb. 18, 2025: Russian and U.S. officials, including Lavrov and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, meet in Saudi Arabia and agree to work toward ending the war, as well as restoring bilateral ties. Ukrainian officials are not invited.

Feb. 28, 2025: Zelenskyy meets with Trump, Rubio and Vice President JD Vance in a contentious session in the Oval Office. A proposed minerals deal between the countries is left unsigned.

March 11, 2025: U.S. and Ukrainian officials meet in Saudi Arabia, with American officials putting forward a plan for a 30-day ceasefire. Kyiv agrees to the proposed truce.

March 13, 2025: Putin effectively rejects the ceasefire plan, stating certain issues must be resolved. He also meets with U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff in Moscow. Witkoff would travel to Russia twice more in April to meet Putin.

March 18, 2025: A proposal is put forward for a temporary halt on strikes on energy infrastructure. Both sides agree to the plan, but soon accuse each other of violations, and the measure later expires.

April 19, 2025: Putin announces a 30-hour ceasefire to mark the Easter holiday, although attacks continue across Ukraine.

April 28, 2025: The Kremlin declares a unilateral 72-hour ceasefire starting May 8 to mark Russia’s Victory Day celebrating the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II. Kyiv does not agree, preferring a 30-day truce proposed by U.S. officials. Both sides accuse each other of violating it.

May 11, 2025: Putin proposes restarting direct talks with Ukraine in Istanbul “without preconditions” but does not agree to the 30-day ceasefire. Zelenskyy challenges Putin to meet in Turkey.

May 15, 2025: Russian and Ukrainian delegations meet for direct talks in Istanbul for the first time since early 2022. Subsequent meetings are held on June 2 and July 23, but aside from ongoing exchanges of prisoners of war and the bodies of fallen soldiers, no substantive progress is made on key issues.

July 14, 2025: Trump says he will implement “severe tariffs” on Russia and countries that continue to buy Russian oil unless Moscow reaches a peace deal with Ukraine within 50 days. Two weeks later, on July 28, he says that he will shorten that deadline to 10-12 days.

Aug. 6, 2025: Witkoff visits Moscow and meets with Putin two days before Trump’s deadline. Later that day, a White House official speaking on condition of anonymity in order to discuss internal plans says Trump and Putin could soon meet in person. A day later, the Kremlin confirms the planned meeting.

Aug. 8, 2025: Trump announces the meeting will take place Aug. 15 in Alaska. He also says “there’ll be some swapping of territories, to the betterment of both” Russia and Ukraine, without elaborating. The next day, Zelenskyy rejects the idea of ceding land, saying that Ukraine “will not give Russia any awards for what it has done” and that “Ukrainians will not give their land to the occupier.”

FILE - Russian presidential aide Vladimir Medinsky arrives for a news conference following a meeting between Russian and Ukrainian delegations for peace talks at the Ciragan Palace in Istanbul, July 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel, File)

FILE - Vice President JD Vance, right, speaks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, left, as President Donald Trump listens in the Oval Office at the White House, Feb. 28, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/ Mystyslav Chernov, File)

FILE - Cargo ships anchored in the Marmara Sea wait to cross the Bosphorus Straits in Istanbul, Nov. 1, 2022. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra, File)

FILE - In this photo, provided by the Turkish Presidency, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, center, welcomes the Russian, left, and Ukrainian delegations ahead of their talks in Istanbul, March 29, 2022. (Turkish Presidency via AP, File)

FILE - Russian President Vladimir Putin, left, and U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff, right, shake hands during their meeting at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, Wednesday, Aug. 6, 2025. (Gavriil Grigorov, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP, File)

EDMONTON, Alberta (AP) — Ilya Sorokin made 35 saves for his NHL-leading fifth shutout of the season, Anthony Duclair scored the game's only goal in the third period on the power play and the New York Islanders edged the Edmonton Oilers 1-0 on Thursday night.

Duclair broke the deadlock with 6:18 remaining in the third period after Calum Ritchie sent a backhand pass to him. Mathew Barzal also assisted on the goal, giving him 500 career points in his 576th game over 10 NHL seasons.

Leon Draisaitl — whose tripping penalty put the Islanders on the power play for their goal — nearly tied it with just over 30 seconds left, but his shot in close hit off the far post to the right of Sorokin.

Connor McDavid, who would've had an assist if Draisaitl's shot went in, had his 20-game points streak end. He joined Wayne Gretzky and Paul Coffey as the only three players in Oilers franchise history to have a points streak of at least 20 games.

It was the 27th career shutout for Sorokin, extending his franchise record. It was the Islanders' first shutout in Edmonton since Billy Smith also stopped 35 shots in New York's 2-0 victory in Game 1 of the 1983 Stanley Cup Final.

The Islanders, who have won four of six overall, had lost their last six games in Edmonton, dating to 2017. They were 1-12-0 against the Oilers in Edmonton since the 2007-08 season.

Connor Ingram made 17 saves for the Oilers, who have dropped three of their last four.

Islanders: Play at Calgary on Saturday.

Oilers: Play at Vancouver on Saturday night.

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AP NHL: https://www.apnews.com/NHL

New York Islanders' Matthew Schaefer (48) takes a shot on net against the Edmonton Oilers during the first period of an NHL hockey game in Edmonton, Alberta, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (Timothy Matwey/The Canadian Press via AP)

Edmonton Oilers goalie Connor Ingram (39) makes a save against New York Islanders' Kyle MacLean (32) during the first period of an NHL hockey game in Edmonton, Alberta, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (Timothy Matwey/The Canadian Press via AP)

New York Islanders' Anthony Duclair (11) celebrates with his teammates at the bench after a goal against the Edmonton Oilers during the third period of an NHL hockey game in Edmonton, Alberta, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (Timothy Matwey/The Canadian Press via AP)

New York Islanders' Ilya Sorokin (30) makes a save the against Edmonton Oilers during the third period of an NHL hockey game in Edmonton, Alberta, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (Timothy Matwey/The Canadian Press via AP)

New York Islanders' Calum Ritchie (64) checks Edmonton Oilers' Curtis Lazar (20) in front of Islanders' goalie Ilya Sorokin (30) during the second period of an NHL hockey game in Edmonton, Alberta, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (Timothy Matwey/The Canadian Press via AP)