President Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin met Friday in Anchorage, Alaska, for high-stakes discussions about Russia’s war in Ukraine. The summit concluded with the two leaders striking a positive tone in statements to the media, but they did not announce a ceasefire or any other breakthroughs from the three hours of talks.
“There were many, many points that we agreed on,” Mr. Trump said at their joint press appearance, but also “a couple of big ones that we haven’t quite gotten there.” He added, “There’s no deal until there’s a deal.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was not invited to the Alaska summit, but Mr. Trump said earlier in the week that another round of talks with both Russia and Ukraine may happen next. No plans for a further meeting were announced Friday, however.
Zelenskyy spoke with Mr. Trump and European leaders on Wednesday and said he hoped an “immediate ceasefire” would be the main focus of the meeting. But Zelenskyy has also warned that “talks about us, without us, will not work” for Ukraine. He said he told Mr. Trump and allied leaders that “Putin is bluffing” and “doesn’t want peace.”
Mr. Trump told reporters earlier in the week that there would be “very severe consequences” for Russia if it doesn’t agree to end the war, but did not elaborate on what that that might entail.
Russia seized Crimea from Ukraine in 2014 and launched a full-scale invasion in February 2022, igniting a bloody war that continues to grind on along front lines in the east and in drone and missile attacks that have terrorized Ukrainian cities.
When was the Trump-Putin meeting?
Mr. Trump and Putin greeted each other on the airport tarmac a little after 3 p.m. EDT (Alaska is 4 hours behind Eastern Time). They then headed inside to begin their meeting with a small contingent of top advisers. At about 7 p.m. EDT they emerged from the talks and held what was billed as a joint press conference, though they did not take any questions from reporters.
Where was the Trump-Putin meeting?
The meeting between the U.S. and Russian presidents is taking place at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, in Anchorage, Alaska. The location is roughly midway between Washington, D.C., and Moscow.
What did they say after the meeting?
Both leaders spoke to the press after the sitdown but declined to take questions. Neither of them mentioned a ceasefire in Ukraine, which was Mr. Trump’s main goal coming into the meeting.
Putin hinted that the two sides had reached “agreements” in their talks, but did not specify what they entailed.
The Russian leader said U.S.-Russia relations have “fallen to the lowest point since the Cold War.” The Russian leader said Mr. Trump wants to get to the “crux of the matter” of the conflict in Ukraine.
Putin, who launched the invasion of Ukraine in 2022, said the “situation in Ukraine has to do with fundamental threats to our security.”
Putin said he is convinced that in order to make any settlement lasting long term, “we need to eliminate all the primary roots, the primary causes of that conflict.”
He also hinted that he wants to normalize relations with the U.S. more generally.
“I expect that today’s agreements will be the starting point not only for the solution of the Ukrainian issue but also will help us bring back business-like and pragmatic relations between Russia and the U.S.,” Putin said.
Mr. Trump began by saying the two leaders had a “very profound” meeting. “Many points were agreed to,” Mr. Trump said, saying he and Putin agreed on “most points.”
“There were many, many points that we agreed on, most of them, I would say,” Mr. Trump said. “A couple of big ones that we haven’t quite gotten there but we’ve made some headway. So there’s no deal until there’s a deal. I will call up NATO in a little while. I will call up the various people that I think are appropriate. I will of course call up President Zelenskyy and tell him about today’s meeting.”
Mr. Trump reiterated his view of the talks later in his statement: “We had an extremely productive meeting, and many points were agreed to. There are just a very few that are left. Some are not that significant. One is probably the most significant, but we have a very good chance of getting there. We didn’t get there, but we have a very good chance of getting there.”
The president took no questions from the press.
“We’re going to try and get this over with. We really made some great progress today,” Mr. Trump said.
Soon after, they were both on their planes to fly back home.