American officials quickly discovered a major snag in planning for the summit: summertime is peak tourist season in Alaska, and options both available and equipped to host the two world leaders were severely limited.

Whether the U.S.-Russia summit can lead to a deal to produce peace in Ukraine more than 3 1/2 years after Moscow’s invasion remains to be seen.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said that the meeting between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin in Alaska on Friday 15 August should not be seen as a victory for the Kremlin or as a concession to Russia.