Russia is set to convey a distinct message to the United States during an upcoming bilateral summit in Alaska, stated Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Friday upon his arrival in Anchorage.

“We don’t attempt to forecast the outcomes or speculate,” Lavrov remarked regarding the imminent discussions between President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson.

“What is clear to us is that we have well-defined arguments to bring to the table, and our stance is firmly established. We will present our position accordingly,” Lavrov informed the media.

This visit by Putin represents the first occasion a Russian leader has traveled to Alaska, a territory that was once part of the Russian Empire before being sold to the United States in 1867. Lavrov mentioned that he has previously visited Alaska.

Joining Lavrov will be Defense Minister Andrei Belousov, Finance Minister Anton Siluanov, Kremlin foreign policy adviser Yury Ushakov, and special economic envoy Kirill Dmitriev as members of the Russian delegation.

The Kremlin has indicated that the discussions in Alaska will center around “resolving the Ukraine crisis.”

Putin has described the efforts of the Trump administration to facilitate peace in Ukraine as “quite active and genuine,” proposing that discussions could lead to an agreement on nuclear arms control between Russia and the U.S.

Trump expressed his belief that Putin aims to “forge an agreement” to conclude the war in Ukraine during their meeting and indicated his intention to hold a follow-up meeting with both Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky afterward.

Zelensky was not invited to the Alaska summit, which he criticized as rewarding Putin, and he has declined Trump’s appeals to yield territory.