This Friday, Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin will meet in Alaska, a setting that’s far from the marble halls of Brussels or the media glare of Geneva. So why Alaska, and what does it mean for the rest of the world? Sean Defoe takes the host’s chair for today’s podcast to unpack the optics, the strategy, and the stakes with Euronews Europe Correspondent Shona Murray. 

Shona’s been inside more summits than most of us have had hot dinners, and she lifts the lid on the choreography of these meetings, from the rigid protocol to the poker-faced bluffing and occasional curveball moments. Together, Sean and Shona explore Trump’s unpredictable, often theatrical approach to diplomacy, Putin’s cooler, more controlled style, and how those personalities collide when the cameras roll and the microphones click on. 

They examine why Alaska may have been chosen as a meeting point - a location far from European influence, raising questions about whether Ukraine is being nudged to the sidelines. With Zelenskyy absent from the table, the conversation turns to the implications for Ukrainian sovereignty, the possibility of territorial compromises, and the mood in Brussels as EU leaders try to present a united front. 

The discussion also reaches back to Trump and Putin’s explosive Helsinki summit in 2018 to draw lessons for what we might see this time around. From the role of body language to the importance of what’s left unsaid in official statements, Sean and Shona map out the signs to watch for that might signal either a breakthrough or another round of geopolitical theatre. 

With insights from Shona’s reporting across NATO, EU summits and Ukraine, this episode of Newstalk Daily takes you from the conference table to the corridors of power — and into the heart of the global chess game about to unfold in Alaska.