White House: The President is prepared to walk out of the meeting if necessary

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt made statements regarding the meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, which will take place in Anchorage, Alaska, on Friday, during her weekly press briefing. Leavitt said, "The brutal war between Russia and Ukraine broke out under Joe Biden's incompetent leadership, but President Trump is determined to end this war and stop the slaughter."

"HE AGREED TO ATTEND THE MEETING AT PUTIN'S REQUEST"

Explaining that the meeting was planned at the request of Putin, which was conveyed to Trump through Middle East Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, Leavitt stated, "The purpose of this meeting is to better understand how we can end this war. The President's preference is always peace and partnership. There is currently no leader in the world as determined as Trump to prevent or end wars."

When a journalist asked why Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was not invited to the summit, Leavitt replied, "This meeting came about after the Russian President requested a meeting with the U.S. President through his special envoy, Steve Witkoff. Witkoff went to Russia at Putin's request and met with him. President Trump agreed to attend this meeting at Putin's request, and the purpose of this meeting is to better understand how we can end this war. In his speech yesterday, President Trump said he hopes that a trilateral meeting with the participation of these three leaders will be held in the future to finally end this conflict. However, this administration has truly tried every path and taken every measure to ensure peace through a diplomatic solution. And I think that the U.S. President sitting face-to-face in the same room with the Russian President, rather than speaking on the phone, will give the President the best indication of how we can end this war and where this process will lead."

Leavitt also emphasized that Trump is in close contact with Zelenskyy, saying, "President Trump's first phone call was to President Zelenskyy and our friends in Europe. He informed everyone about the path the U.S. will take to end this conflict."

"THE PRESIDENT INHERITED THIS CONFLICT"

Touching upon the potential land swap between Russia and Ukraine that Trump mentioned in recent days, Leavitt said, "The President inherited this conflict and is determined to end it. This is a very complex and difficult situation. I will not go into the details of the plans; I will leave those to the U.S. President's discussions with the Russian President and our European friends."

When asked if the meeting would be canceled if Putin is not serious, Leavitt said, "I will not engage in any hypotheticals, and I will wait for the President to speak to you after the meeting."

"THE PRESIDENT IS PREPARED TO WALK OUT OF THE MEETING IF NECESSARY"

Explaining Trump's expectations for the meeting in Alaska, Leavitt said, "This is a listening exercise for the President. Only one of the parties involved in this war will be attending the meeting, so the President needs to go there and gain a firmer understanding of how we can end this war. The President is optimistic about the meeting, but he is also prepared to walk out if necessary."

When asked, "President Zelenskyy just said he believes Russia is preparing for a new offensive in at least three different areas of the front line; does U.S. intelligence have information on this? Could the Trump-Putin meeting be canceled?" Leavitt replied, "I will not engage in any hypotheticals."

"HE HAS EXPENDED INTENSE EFFORT"

Regarding a question about Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's plan to occupy Gaza City, Leavitt said, "October 7 was one of the worst days in history. Since this administration took office in January, it has spent a lot of time, effort, and resources to end this conflict. We want the hostages to be released, and the President and his national security team have expended intense effort on this matter."

When a journalist asked, "A judge has decided that the grand jury transcripts in the Ghislaine Maxwell case should not be released. What is the White House's response to this? President Trump's supporters want this information to be disclosed," Leavitt replied, "We find this decision unfortunate. Of course, the President wants credible evidence to be released. That is why we will take action to have the information disclosed."