Putin "plays with the desire of the U.S. administration to bring peace to Ukraine," Zahorodniuk said. "Putin wants to get the U.S. on their side to get all Donbas, something they cannot achieve without losing another few hundred thousand people and a year of time."

Sentiment toward Russia in Alaska has cooled since Putin invaded Ukraine in 2022. The Anchorage Assembly voted unanimously to suspend its three-decade-long sister city relationship with Magadan, Russia, and the Juneau Assembly sent its sister city of Vladivostock a letter expressing concern.

See inside Elmendorf, the U.S. military base in Alaska where President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladmir Putin will meet.