Lavrov arrived already on Thursday evening, local time – half a day before the meeting between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin.
There is no reason to try to predict things. We have arguments, a clear and understandable position. We will present it, says the Foreign Minister according to news agencies.
However, it is Lavrov's choice of clothing that attracts the most attention. In a video clip published, among other things, by the Belarusian Nexta, the minister, usually dressed in a suit, is seen getting out of a car wearing jeans and a white shirt with the text CCCP, the Cyrillic abbreviation for the Soviet Union. Interesting choice of clothing, notes Sky News, considering how the Cold War between the US and the Soviet Union characterized the second half of the 20th century.
First meeting
The meeting at the Elmendorf-Richardson military base begins at 9 pm tonight, Swedish time, according to a press release from the White House. It will be the first time the two presidents meet face to face since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Prior to the meeting, demonstrations in solidarity with Ukraine have been held in the vicinity of Anchorage. Many are protesting that Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyj is not invited.
Putin should be in prison, and now he gets to come to Alaska just like that, says Alaskan Hanna Correa, who came to the US from Ukraine six years ago, to BBC.
"Kneels" to Putin
Putin has nothing to do in our state, let alone in our country. We have an idiot in the White House who kneels to that guy, says another demonstrant, military veteran Christopher Kelliher.
Others welcome the meeting. Mark Kalashnikov, an Orthodox believer born in Russia, tells the AP news agency that many he knows have suffered greatly from the war.
It is reassuring to see that there is at least some communication. We try to do what is asked of us, come together in community and pray.
