SENSINGS ON ‘TRUMPUTIN’ (COLLISION TO COLLUSION)  

SUMMIT 15 AUGUST 2025


The subtle yet diametrically opposite meaning derived by substituting the alphabet I with U in the word ‘collision’ is the essence of the ‘TrumPutin’ summit; an attempt at reset in US Russia geopolitical relationship from confrontation to transformative collaboration.Col RS Sidhu


Future at Crossroads

There is rare unanimity of thought across all the key parameters that drive the affairs of nations the world over – geoeconomic, geopolitical, cultural mindsets, and alignment of the stars – that the world is hurtling towards an inevitable collision in the affairs of nations climaxing in the next two to three years.

However, there is always that window of opportunity open till the end for the saner voices to prevail and convert the dominant US Russia international relations from one of collision to collusion.

The answer to the current predicament that the world faces, a cataclysmic conflagration or a transformative geopolitical reset, lies in the root query ‘Can the sensing of meeting of minds between ‘TrumPutin’ transcend the century of adversarial relationship and distrust between the security establishments within US and Russia?!’

Symbolism of the Place of Summit

Alaska, a vast 586, 400 square miles of virgin land, was a Russian territory till it was sold by it for US Dollar 7.2 million in 1867 to the US. Alaska is a mere 300 miles from the North Pole, with the mineral rich Polar land mass and the adjoining maritime waters being a bone of contention between the US, Russia, and the Scandinavian countries.

During the last Ice Age, Alaska acted as a land bridge connecting the land mass of America and Asia, till a sudden 6 degree Centigrade rise in global temperatures around 10,000 BCE, and the resultant increase in the mean sea level by around 100 meters, caused the formation of the Bering Straits.  

This 82 kms wide maritime channel, and the International Date Line passing through it, now represent the deep divide between Russia and the US.  

During the WW II, Alaska acted as an ‘air bridge’ between US and USSR for ferrying US military equipment and supplies to the USSR across the Bering Straits, to support the war against Nazi Germany; a key factor in bolstering the war fighting potential of the Russian Army.

Aloof from the negative energies of the US mainland, it symbolises both, the disconnect and the meeting points between the US and Russia.

Beyond ‘TrumPutin’ ‘Meeting of Minds’

The aura vibrations of the two Presidents sensed during the joint address to the media clearly indicate an undeniable ‘TrumPutin’ ‘meeting of minds.’ But that by itself is not enough.

There are two root issues that shall impact the final outcome. The most critical is guarantees of US adherence to a long term recalibration of US Russia relations, post Trump administration, to the satisfaction of Russia. This is solely dependent on the ability of POTUS Donald Trump to orchestrate quid pro quo concessions to the energy and armaments lobbies to get them onboard.

The second root issue is Russia’s place in the inevitable new European security architecture to replace the existing NATO and EU regime. The future of Ukraine territories and of its President Volodymyr Zelensky is secondary; sacrificing national leaders, and even nations, at the altar of expediency is all too common in European history. Obtaining consent from the major EU countries shall be the biggest stumbling block, as the historical rivalries and cultural angst go too deep.

This is where geoeconomics aspects shall take the lead role, by dangling the carrot of a joint economic development of natural resources in the mineral rich far eastern Siberian region of Russia and the Polar land mass and the maritime region adjoining it. POTUS Trump, adept at ‘carrot & stick’ approach to economic and geopolitical negotiations, just may be able to pull off this master act.

Geopolitical Impact

Even the holding of the yet inconclusive ‘TrumPutin’ summit, has set alarm bells ringing across the globe from London, Paris, Brussels, Berlin, Delhi, Tokyo to Beijing.  

The most profound impact shall be on the nascent Russia India China (RIC) triangle of disparate interests, and the BRICS grouping. Here, it will be dependent on the ability of Russia to bring onboard China and India into a collaborative approach by factoring their core interests in future negotiations with the US; a tall order indeed.

But a glimmer of hope, howsoever dim, has appeared on the horizon. Whether it brightens or dies out shall be clearer by November of the year.

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