Members of the local Ukrainian community - especially those with family back in Ukraine - have been on edge since the war began.

Ukrainians at Irondequoit's Ukrainian Festival are feeling cautious and deeply skeptical that President Trump can work with Vladimir Putin to bring an end to the war in their homeland.

In Ukraine, the morning of Aug. 16 began in suspense. Soon after waking, many rushed to anxiously check the outcome of the Alaska summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart,

The Trump administration is letting a makeshift Biden-era program lapse.

Peace talks between the United States and Russia, aimed at ending the war in Ukraine, have left local Ukrainians feeling tense. Despite ongoing discussions, no deal has been reached, and Ukraine remains under attack by Russia for more than three years.

After more than three years of war, Ukrainians are skeptical there will be a breakthrough to end it at the meeting between President Trump and Russia’s President Putin. NBC News’ Richard Engel spoke to a family grieving a fallen Ukrainian soldier and visited a drone command center hidden in a garage.

Ukrainians are concerned that not being included in the summit will force the country to make concessions. Russia has pushed back against including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in talks to end the war until a deal is reached by both sides.

Gallup has polled Ukrainians four times since the start of the full-scale invasion launched in February 2022. Its latest survey of 1,000 people was conducted between July 1 and July 14, 2025, with a margin of error of between 3.6 and 4.3 percentage points.