US President Donald Trump insisted Thursday he would not be intimidated by Russian leader Vladimir Putin on the eve of a high-stakes summit and said Ukraine would be involved in any deal on its fate.

Putin flies to Alaska on Friday at the invitation of Trump in his first visit to a Western country since he ordered the 2022 invasion of Ukraine that has killed tens of thousands of people.

As Russia made gains on the battlefield, the Kremlin said the two presidents planned to meet one-on-one, heightening fears of European leaders that Putin will cajole Trump into a settlement imposed on Ukraine.

Trump insisted to reporters at the White House: "I am president, and he's not going to mess around with me."

"I'll know within the first two minutes, three minutes, four minutes or five minutes...

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