LIVE: Here's the latest on Trump-Putin summit meeting in Finland

HELSINKI – Here's the latest on President Donald Trump’s summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin (all times local):

4:30 p.m.

Recommended Videos



President Donald Trump says he and Russian President Vladimir Putin have had a “good start” to their high-stakes summit in Finland.

Trump is calling his meeting with Putin “a good start, a very good start for everybody” as the two leaders and their top advisers sat across the table from one another during a luncheon. It followed more than two hours of one-on-one discussions involving just the U.S. and Russian leaders, with only translators present.

The White House had scheduled 90 minutes for that meeting.

Trump was joined at the luncheon by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, U.S. Ambassador to Russia Jon Huntsman and other top aides.

After the lunch, Trump and Putin will appear for a joint news conference in Helsinki.

4:10 p.m.

The one-on-one meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin is running overtime and has now passed the two-hour mark.

A Finnish official said the two leaders were still meeting as of 4:09 p.m., two hours after they began their meeting in the Gothic Hall of the Presidential Palace in Helsinki. The White House had scheduled 90 minutes for the meeting, in which only translators are present.

It's not the first time the presidents' talks have gone long. In their first meeting last year, they ended up talking for more than two hours. Midway through, first lady Melania Trump was sent in to help wrap things up. Trump and Putin continued to talk for another hour.

---

2:35 p.m.

President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin are meeting privately, joined only by translators, in the Finnish Presidential Palace.

The two leaders entered the Gothic Hall with serious expressions, moving quickly to two ornate wooden chairs set before American and Russian flags. Trump sat upright as Putin appeared to lounge in his chair.

Trump deferred to Putin to make opening remarks, nodding along as his comments in Russian were translated. Trump predicted that the pair will have an "extraordinary relationship."

Trump initiated a brief handshake with Putin, as the assembled press jostled to capture the moment.

Putin appeared to smirk as Trump ignored shouted questions about whether he would warn the Russian leader against meddling in the 2018 midterm elections.

---

2:20 p.m.

President Donald Trump says at the start of his summit with Russia's President Vladimir Putin in Helsinki that he thinks "the world wants to see us get along."

Trump says the two countries have "great opportunities," saying they have not been getting along for the past few years. He says he thinks they can have an "extraordinary relationship."

He says their discussions will involve trade, the military, missiles, nuclear weapons and China, including their "mutual friend" China's Xi Jingping. He did not mention Russia's meddling in the U.S. election.

The two leaders were seated together in a room adorned by American and Russian flags at the Finnish Presidential Palace, separated by a small table.

The meeting started about 45 minutes late following Putin's delayed arrival to Finland.  

---

2:15 p.m.

Russian President Vladimir Putin says it's time to talk seriously with President Donald Trump about relations between their powerful nations and global problems.

Putin revealed little about his agenda in terse remarks at the start of talks with Trump in Helsinki.

While Trump spoke more extensively amid incessant clicks of cameras, Putin said only that "the time has come to talk thoroughly about bilateral relations as well as various hotspots in the world." He called the meeting part of "continued constant contacts" between the men.

Putin looked serious but smirked when journalists asked Trump about Russian meddling in the U.S. presidential campaign. Trump refused to answer.

He and Trump shook hands briefly and headed into talks, which are being closely watched around the world.

---

2 p.m.

President Donald Trump has arrived at Finland’s Presidential Palace for a summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Putin arrived minutes earlier at the palace in Helsinki for the summit, which consists of a one-on-one meeting and a larger working lunch, and will conclude with a joint news conference.

Monday’s meeting is being closely watched on both sides of the Atlantic, coming days after the U.S. Justice Department indicted 12 Russian military intelligence officers for their role in hacking Democratic entities during the 2016 presidential campaign.

Trump says he hopes for better relations with the Russian leader. He faces bipartisan skepticism in Washington that his desire for warming ties is displacing concerns over Russia’s annexation of Crimea and other destabilizing actions.

---

1:05 p.m.

President Vladimir Putin has arrived late for his high-profile meeting with President Donald Trump — another display of the Russian’s leader famous lack of punctuality.

Putin’s plane touched down in Helsinki 30 minutes later than planned, pushing back the start of his one-on-one talks with Trump Monday.

In the past, Putin was late for meetings with Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II and Pope Francis, among many others.

In 2014, he was hours late for meeting German Chancellor Angela Merkel, after his previous stop in Serbia lasted longer than usual.

Often seen as a trick to throw his interlocutors off balance, Putin’s tardy ways appear to be more of a personal trait than a well-calculated strategy.