WASHINGTON, August 16. /TASS/. The administration of US President Donald Trump should avoid escalating tensions with Russia ahead of the midterm congressional elections and instead seek to expand trade and joint projects in the spirit of Anchorage, independent candidate for US President Diane Sare told TASS.

"Luckily, the United States is having midterm elections in November. The American people are weary of war, and this may impact the Trump administration's thinking on whether it is wise to escalate the conflict against Russia. Not to mention that, between arming Ukraine and Israel, and attacking Iran, we have depleted our own conventional munitions to very low levels," Sare said.

She announced in January that she would run as an independent candidate in the 2028 presidential election.

Sare called the US intelligence community and Pentagon providing Kiev with data for strikes on Russian territory "unfortunate and destructive." "It would be far more productive to revive the spirit of Alaska and emphasize the enormous benefits to be reaped on both sides by cooperation in trade and development on such projects as the Bering Strait Tunnel and the Northern Sea Transport Route," the presidential candidate said.

Sare said the US could immediately pledge not to be the first to use nuclear weapons, arguing that this "would help to alleviate some uncertainty and further the negotiating process." "Unfortunately, this is not what is being expressed by our Under Secretary of War for Policy, Elbridge Colby, who seems to be saying the opposite with regard to the use of tactical nuclear weapons," she said, referring to the Pentagon official’s remarks that the US "must carry the biggest stick in the world."

Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump met in Anchorage, Alaska, on August 15 last year. Putin later said the so-called spirit of Anchorage was not formalized in any documents or signed by either side. The summit focused on ways to end the conflict in Ukraine.