World | Alaska summit Just Ahead of Putin Meeting, Trump Keeps Up Pressure Aboard Air Force One, Trump says he 'would walk' if it doesn't go well By John Johnson Posted Aug 15, 2025 1:04 PM CDT Copied President Trump speaks with reporters before boarding Air Force One at Lehigh Valley International Airport, Sunday, Aug. 3, 2025, in Allentown, Pa. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson) President Trump is keeping up his work-the-refs strategy all through the lead-up to his meeting with Vladimir Putin. As the president flew to Alaska on Friday, the White House released a video clip in which he's talking to Fox News' Bret Baier aboard Air Force One: "I think it's going to work out very well—and if it doesn't, I'm going to head back home real fast," said Trump, per the Wall Street Journal. Baier then clarified: "If it doesn't, you walk?" To which Trump responded, "I would walk." But in what the New York Times sees as "the latest conflicting signal" about what might happen at the summit, Trump called staunch Putin ally Aleksandr G. Lukashenko, the president of Belarus, while on the flight. Trump said they had a "wonderful talk." Trump and Putin are scheduled to meet at 3pm Eastern, then participate in a joint meeting with their respective delegations before holding a news conference. As of now, Trump is scheduled to depart for DC at 5:45 Eastern. However, that could change depending on how the meeting shakes out. Read These Next Hunter Biden shrugs off threat from Melania Trump. Hiker made the mistake of grabbing a rattlesnake. Bereaved dad: 'It's not the way I imagined my vacation.' Girl, 11, disappeared in 1996. An arrest has just been made. Report an error