U.S. President Donald Trump repeatedly said during his successful campaign for a second term that he could end the war in Ukraine “in 24 hours.” But since his Jan. 20 inauguration, the road to a peace deal has been fraught with changing dynamics among Trump, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

A summit between Trump and Putin set for Friday in Alaska could now be a pivotal moment in the 3 1/2-year-old war.

“At the end of that meeting, probably the first two minutes, I’ll know exactly whether or not a deal can be made,” Trump said Monday.

Trump’s rhetoric toward both Zelenskyy and Putin has evolved this year.

At the start of his second term, Trump was conciliatory toward Putin, for whom he has long shown admiration. But as Putin remained intrans

See Full Page