Fine words but no tangible results. The eagerly awaited Alaska summit between the presidents of the United States, Donald Trump, and Russia, Vladimir Putin, launched with all the pomp, circumstance, and red carpet to welcome the Russian, concluded after two and a half hours almost in silence: without an agreement on Ukraine. Also without a firm commitment to a trilateral agreement that includes the Ukrainian leader, Volodymyr Zelensky, much less a ceasefire. But the two leaders expressed their interest in meeting again"soon" and described the contacts as "productive." And Trump declared that although "the most important thing" has not been achieved so far, he believes it can eventually be achieved. His Russian counterpart made it clear that he will not budge from his positions.
In a way, the meeting at Elmendorf-Richardson Air Force Base, on the northern outskirts of Anchorage, Alaska, ended to everyone's liking. Putin got what he wanted from this meeting above all else: a photo with the US president, on US soil, with US planes and soldiers paying homage to him: a demonstration to the world that the international pariah status he had held since the start of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 has been extinguished. All this without having to offer any concessions.
For his part, Trump promotes the image he seeks as a statesman in pursuit of peace. Thousands of miles away, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and the Europeans can breathe a sigh of relief, albeit cautiously: no trilateral summit is scheduled, but neither have the two leaders reached—yet—an agreement that would pressure kyiv to resign itself to the loss of territories or other unacceptable peace conditions. This latter was the great fear in Ukraine and European capitals: that Putin would take advantage of the face-to-face meeting to convince the American of his demands for Ukrainian territory.
“We've closed a lot of points. There are only a few remaining. Some aren't too important. One is probably the most important, although we have a good chance of getting it done. We haven't done it, but we have a good chance of getting it done” in the future, Trump declared during a joint press conference. He emphasized: “There's no deal until there's a deal done.”
The Republican had anticipated that it would take only a few minutes to determine whether the Russian was serious about peace or simply bluffing to buy time. In that case, he assured them, he would return home and be done with it, but Putin would have to face"serious consequences."
The summit lasted less than a few minutes, but its two-and-a-half-hour duration was shorter than planned in the informal White House programs, and much shorter than the six or seven hours the Kremlin had anticipated. Although details of what transpired are still unclear, the meeting appears to have been limited to its first part: the conversation between the two leaders almost alone, accompanied only by their foreign ministers. There were no broader negotiations with the rest of the respective delegations. Even Trump's statements were briefer than the American's usual style when appearing before the press.
Later, in an interview with Fox News, the US president maintained that the meeting had been"a great one" and suggested that a meeting between Putin and Zelensky would eventually take place."They're going to schedule a meeting, and maybe they want me to be there too."
In these statements, he put the ball in Ukraine's court:"It's really up to President Zelensky to achieve it [a peace agreement]. I would also say that European countries need to get involved a little, but it's up to President Zelensky." And he recommended that Ukraine "reach a pact" with Moscow: "Russia is a great power, and they are not."
He also noted that, following the meeting, he has no imminent plans to penalize China, Russia's major energy customer, for its oil purchases from Moscow, as he has announced he will do with India. This is something he would consider, in any case, within"two to three weeks."
Neither leader took questions during their joint address to the media. The Russian president spoke first, emphasizing that the two countries are"neighbors" and share "a broad common cultural heritage." He stated that when he greeted Trump upon his arrival, he greeted him"as a neighbor," "with warm words," and expressed his pleasure at seeing him again.
"We have established a very good working relationship with President Trump based on trust. I have every reason to believe that if we continue along this path, we can reach an end to the conflict as soon as possible," Putin declared, in a more extensive address than his host's.
The Russian president made it clear that he hasn't budged an inch from his established positions, which have remained the same since the beginning of the invasion. He expressed hope that the understanding they have reached will help bring them closer to peace in Ukraine and reiterated that"Russia sincerely wants to end the conflict" in the occupied country. But—and herein lies the major obstacle—"all the root causes of the conflict must be resolved."
For Putin, resolving these issues requires definitively blocking any aspirations by kyiv to join NATO; limiting the Western weapons available to its neighbor; and definitively placing the provinces of Luhansk and Donetsk under its control, including the areas controlled by Ukrainian forces. This is something Zelensky and the European allies categorically reject.
Putin also appealed to kyiv and its European partners. He hoped they would"take all this constructively, and not start putting up obstacles or try to stop the progress we have made with provocations and behind-the-scenes machinations."
The Kremlin resident ended his remarks with a provocative invitation: "Next time, in Moscow?" he said, throwing down a gauntlet that Trump didn't want to completely dismiss."It's an interesting proposal," the American president responded."I might get a little flack for it, but it's something I can imagine happening." A short time later, the two presidents took off from the military base on their way back to their respective capitals. The Russian departed first. The American followed almost immediately.
Trump's next step, for now, was going to be a round of calls. First to Zelensky, to inform him of the meeting's discussions. Then, to European leaders, who over the past few days had launched a diplomatic display, from a meeting at Chevening, the British Foreign Secretary's vacation residence, with Vice President J.D. Vance and other senior US officials, to a video conference with Trump himself, to prevent the former KGB agent from persuading the White House resident with his arguments. Trump emphasized in his statements that it would be up to the Ukrainians and the Russians to decide what proposals they want to put forward to end the war.
The Anchorage meeting was the seventh between the two leaders, but the first between a US president and the Kremlin leader since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine more than three and a half years ago.
The meeting had begun amidst excitement, with a warm handshake between the two at the foot of the runway at the military base. They had both sought to show their dynamism, smiling and exchanging greetings as they walked down the red carpet toward a podium where they posed for official photos of the greeting.
