Overview

• According to Reuters reporting based on five unnamed sources, options discussed included a possible ExxonMobil return to the Sakhalin‑1 project and U.S. equipment sales for sanctioned LNG ventures such as Arctic LNG 2.
• The menu of ideas also featured a reported U.S. purchase of Russian nuclear icebreakers, though none of the proposals has been confirmed or implemented.
• Sources say the conversations took place during U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff’s early‑August visit to Moscow and were briefly raised at the Trump–Putin meeting in Alaska, with subsequent discussion inside the White House.
• The White House told Reuters it remains in close contact with Moscow and Kyiv to end the war and that publicly negotiating details is not in the national interest; ExxonMobil, Rosneft, Novatek and Kirill Dmitriev declined comment.
• One insider said the White House sought a high‑profile investment headline after the Alaska summit, and another cited an aim to steer Russia toward U.S. technology rather than Chinese, while no formal agreements or sanction rollbacks are in place.