Trump welcomes Putin and the Alaska Summit called “very productive”
President Donald Trump called Russian President Vladimir Putin and the Alaska Summit “very productive,” but said there was “no deal.”
WASHINGTON – President Vladimir Putin has rode the presidential limousine to achieve recognition on the world stage.
Donald Trump flew over 4,000 miles, unfolded the red carpet for Alaska’s Russian leaders, and left empty-handed after about three hours of negotiations.
The much-spurred summit between Trump and Putin has not achieved a major breakthrough in peace negotiations over Russia’s war against Ukraine, bent over the US president’s skills in promoting his deal.
The talks reached its peak with an ambiguous statement to the media that Putin spoke about the “consensus.” Trump was then left in a troublesome position to declare that he had reached “no deal.”
A planned press conference? It was cancelled. The two leaders spoke briefly, with no questions asked.
“There were a lot of points we agreed to,” Trump said without elaborating. “Some big things we haven’t got there,” he added. “So, there’s no trade until there’s a transaction.”
Trump said he would call President Vouraen Voldimia Zelensky and his NATO allies to report them in conversations with his Russian counterparts who were segregated by Western leaders after invading Ukraine in 2022.
Warning of “severe consequences” if a ceasefire fails, the US president said goodbye to the media as he boarded the Washington Air Force, when Putin ran down the faraway runway.
Putin evokes the “root cause” of war, Jabs Trump for Biden
For a television president who regularly analyzes questions from reporters, Trump’s quick exit after the meeting was extraordinary.
The two men spoke for a total of 12 minutes – Putin moved on first. He praised Trump for calling the meeting, saying relations between the two countries have fallen to their lowest point since the Cold War.
However, he soon raised old charges about the “root cause” of the conflict that had long denounced the expansion of NATO and cooperation with Ukraine’s West.
And while President Putin in particular said, “We should ensure Ukraine’s safety,” Russia was “ready to tackle it,” he refused to say what he was thinking.
“We hope that the agreement we reached together will help us to bring that goal closer and pave the way for Ukraine’s peace,” Putin added without saying that it would entail.
He then warned Ukrainian and European leaders to “throw wrenches at the work” by “making a backroom deal to provoke the early progressions for torpedoes.”
“I don’t think I’ve heard anything about any change in Russia’s biggest position,” said David Salvo, a former State Department official who worked for Russia.
He cast Putin’s comments as “Grand Standing,” and said of Ukraine’s security guarantee:
Putin also jabs on former President Joe Biden and said he agreed with Trump’s claim that if Republicans had won in 2020, a war would never have happened.
Trump said Putin’s comments were “very deep.” He described the meeting as “very productive” and said that both sides agreed to “many points” without giving details.
“We didn’t get there, but the chances of getting there are very good,” Trump said.
Trump leaves without a ceasefire agreement
Hanging from the top was a possibility of a ceasefire, and Zelensky and European leaders thought it could come out of consultations.
However, expectations fell rapidly as Trump spoke about a potential “land exchange” rejected by Zelensky. Trump lowered his expectations before the summit and tried to hold the conversation as a meeting about future talks.
Alaska Sen. Lisa Markovsky told CNN while the summit was happening:
The summit ended without mentioning a ceasefire by Putin or Trump. Putin and Trump repeatedly believed that a consensus was seen in an interview with Fox News host Sean Hannity after the summit.
Trump added: “It’s up to President Zelensky to get that done right now.”
He showed that the exchange of prisoners between Russia and Ukraine is part of the debate.
Putin teases possible business deals with Trump
First, there was a joint hockey game. Then there were films that promoted “traditional values.” And at their Alaska Summit, Putin created another temptation: potential economic investments.
“It is clear that US and Russia’s investment and business cooperation have immense potential,” Putin said. “Russia and the US can provide more to each other in trade, digital, high-tech and space exploration. We can see that Arctic cooperation is also very possible.”
At the summit, Putin was accompanied by Kiril Dmitriev, an envoy for investment and economic cooperation. Putin’s advisor met with Trump envoy Steve Witkoff in Washington in April.
“He brings a lot of businessmen from Russia. That’s good. I like it because they want to do business,” Trump told Air Force reporters on his way to Alaska. “But they’re not in business until we solve the war.”
Treasury Secretary Scott Bescent and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick came along with Trump.
Trump later mentioned “a tremendous Russian business representative” at the summit, saying, “Everyone wants to deal with us.”
In an interview with his Honity, Trump also showed Putin tried to flatten him by saying that he was “equipped” in the 2020 election, which lost to Biden, and fanned unfounded claims that the outcome was the result of widespread voter fraud.
Trump unfolds a red carpet for Putin
Putin received a warm reception in Alaska after years of being left in the cold by Western leaders.
The summit began with Trump giving Putin an outreach hand. The Russian leader greeted him by walking along the red carpet crossed by tarmac. Trump applauded his hands as Putin approached.
They waved, tapped each other’s arms, walked together, posing for the photo on a platform with a sign that read “Alaska 2025.” Background: military planes and personnel, mountains covered with green clouds.
The reporter cried out, “President Putin, will you stop killing civilians?” While Putin was standing next to Trump on the platform. He gestured, but said nothing.
Trump and Putin rode together at Trump’s limousine summit without aides.
The frustration that Trump expressed over the summer expressing his reluctance to agree to Putin’s peace agreement has disappeared.
“I have always had a great relationship with President Putin and Vladimir,” Trump said of his Russian counterpart, whom he shared the stage together in Alaska.
What now? Serious consequences? Secondary customs? Another meeting?
The lack of progress at the Trump Putin Summit has raised questions about what will happen next.
Trump said he plans to talk to Zelenskyy and NATO leaders to talk to Zelensky and NATO leaders. He once again spoke about the moderation of a tripartite meeting between Putin and Zelensky.
And he warned before the meeting that if Putin were not cooperative, he would face “severe consequences” and threaten tariff hikes on top Russian trading partners, but for now he said he was keeping China off the hook.
“I don’t think I need to think about it because of what happened today,” Trump told Hannity. “I might need to think about it now in two or three weeks, etc., but now I don’t need to think about it. I think the meeting has been very successful.”
Trump’s next move will be closely monitored to see if he took the summit or maintains a friendly stance towards Putin, who took a more robust approach.
“By framing it in his own mind as a positive meeting, we put pressure on Russia to make him pay for the war to continue,” said former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine John Habst. “At least for now.”
Trump told reporters before the meeting that he “we’re not trying to waste a lot of time, a lot of energy and a lot of money” in negotiations, hoping that the war would soon be concluded.
“The wildcard now is whether Trump is actually tough on Russia, or whether it’s kind of an endless meeting and Russia stalls for time,” said Salvo, managing director of the Alliance to Ensure Democracy at the German Marshall Fund.
