US President Donald Trump concluded talks with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin at an important summit in Alaska that could determine the future of the war in Ukraine.

The meeting between the two leaders and their senior advisers lasted about three hours, AFP reported.

Trump and Putin arrived in their respective presidential planes and disembarked on the runway at the air base, with Trump applauding as Putin set foot on Western soil for the first time since ordering the invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

The military might of the US was demonstrated by a B-2 stealth bomber flying overhead, while a reporter shouted at Putin, "Will you stop killing civilians?"

Putin, unfazed, smiled broadly as Trump took the unusual step of escorting him to "The Beast," the US presidential limousine, before the meeting in a room with a screen that read — in English only — "In Search of Peace."

Putin smiled and joked with Russian reporters during the visit, which is a breakthrough for a leader against whom the International Criminal Court has issued an arrest warrant in connection with the war in Ukraine, which has claimed the lives of tens of thousands of people. | BGNES