Anchorage was meant to be the stage for a breakthrough on Ukraine. Instead, it became a showcase for Vladimir Putin . After nearly three hours of talks with Donald Trump , the Russian leader left Alaska without offering concessions, but with something far more valuable: legitimacy, visibility, and the image of standing shoulder-to-shoulder with an American president.
“We had an extremely productive meeting and many points were agreed to, there are just a very few that are left,” Trump said following his meeting with Putin. “We didn’t get there, but we have a very good chance of getting there.”
Read more: 10 takeaways from Donald Trump-Putin’s high-stakes meet
Putin, in turn, thanked Trump for hosting him, smiled, and even teased: “Next time in Moscow.” For a leader ostracised by the West since 2022 and wanted by the International Criminal Court, the summit itself was a victory.
A warm welcome and a lack of substance
The pageantry was carefully staged. Putin arrived to a red carpet and a B-2 bomber flyover before riding with Trump in the US president’s armoured limousine — a privilege rarely extended to foreign leaders. Inside the meeting, aides including Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov joined discussions, but concrete progress proved elusive.
Trump conceded: “We haven’t quite got there, but we’ve made some headway. So, there’s no deal until there’s a deal.” Later on Fox News, he repeated that talks were “very warm” but offered no details.
Putin flattered Trump directly, suggesting the war would not have happened if he were president in 2020. “I think that would have been the case,” Putin said, echoing Trump’s own frequent claim. Trump did not challenge him. Instead, he praised Putin as “a strong guy” and added, “I’ve always had a fantastic relationship with President Putin, with Vladimir.”
Time on Putin’s side
With the war grinding on into its fourth year, Russia has been slowly gaining ground in eastern Ukraine. That dynamic gave Putin confidence to emerge from Alaska without making concessions. As Trump put it afterwards: “Now it’s really up to President Zelenskyy to get it done.”
Putin praised the “friendly” tone of the summit and said Washington and Moscow should “turn the page.” He warned European allies not to “create any obstacles” or disrupt “emerging progress through provocation or behind-the-scenes intrigues.”
The optics, however, were more telling than the words. Time magazine described the spectacle as a “nothing-burger outcome” that nevertheless gave Putin exactly what he craved: parity with an American president. “An indicted war criminal who cannot travel to over 100 nations, the Russian President literally had a red carpet rolled out for him on United States territory by an American president. And he didn’t have to give up anything for it — he just had to show up,” Time reported.
For Trump, the absence of a deal was striking. “Deals are what I do,” he once boasted, but in Anchorage he left with only warm words and no agreement. As Time noted, “The self-professed world’s greatest dealmaker left without a deal.”
From public pushback to a reset
Just weeks before the Alaska summit, President Trump had publicly lashed out at Vladimir Putin—threatening crippling tariffs on Russian oil and blasting his erratic behaviour, an about-face from the praise he heaped on Putin during their meeting.
Having earlier accused Moscow of “a lot of bullshit,” Trump warned via NBC News that, “if Russia and I are unable to make a deal on stopping the bloodshed in Ukraine… I am going to put secondary tariffs on oil, on all oil coming out of Russia.” That stern warning was accompanied by reports of renewed US military support to Kyiv, including Patriot missile batteries, intended as leverage and a signal of commitment.
Contrast that with the March Oval Office meeting with President Zelenskyy, which ended in tension. Trump reportedly berated him, calling him “disrespectful” and insinuating he failed to properly appreciate US aid. The promise of a rare-earth minerals deal vanished as the conversation veered into accusations and blame, with Trump telling Zelenskyy, “You don't have the cards right now… You’re gambling with millions of lives.” The meeting ended abruptly, underpinning the lack of grace extended to Ukraine even as it faces existential threats.
By comparison, the Alaska summit marked a dramatic reset in Trump’s posture toward Putin. With public praise, warm words, and symbolic optics, Trump effectively renewed their rapport. That shift placed the burden back on Zelenskyy—Trump declared, “Now it’s really up to President Zelenskyy to get it done”—elevating the pressure on Ukraine to move quickly toward a ceasefire or deal. In doing so, the summit reinforced Putin’s advantage: he regained influence without sacrifice, while Ukraine and its leader were left under renewed diplomatic strain.
Zelenskyy’s response: Calling for a trilateral
After the meeting, Trump hosted a call with several European leaders and said Ukrainian President Zelenskyy would come to Washington on Monday. He added that, if those talks go well, a follow-up meeting with President Putin would be scheduled — “Potentially, millions of people’s lives will be saved.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy quickly moved to reassert Kyiv’s position after being sidelined in Alaska. In a post on X, he said he held a “long and substantive” call with Trump on Saturday, including both one-on-one talks and a wider discussion with European leaders.
“Ukraine reaffirms its readiness to work with maximum effort to achieve peace,” Zelenskyy wrote. He confirmed Trump had briefed him on the Putin meeting and said Kyiv supported the idea of a trilateral summit involving Ukraine, the United States, and Russia: “Key issues can be discussed at the level of leaders, and a trilateral format is suitable for this.”
Zelenskyy added that he would meet Trump in Washington on Monday “to discuss all of the details regarding ending the killing and the war.” He stressed that Europeans must be involved “at every stage to ensure reliable security guarantees together with America,” and welcomed “positive signals” from Washington on security commitments.
“We had an extremely productive meeting and many points were agreed to, there are just a very few that are left,” Trump said following his meeting with Putin. “We didn’t get there, but we have a very good chance of getting there.”
Read more: 10 takeaways from Donald Trump-Putin’s high-stakes meet
Putin, in turn, thanked Trump for hosting him, smiled, and even teased: “Next time in Moscow.” For a leader ostracised by the West since 2022 and wanted by the International Criminal Court, the summit itself was a victory.
A warm welcome and a lack of substance
The pageantry was carefully staged. Putin arrived to a red carpet and a B-2 bomber flyover before riding with Trump in the US president’s armoured limousine — a privilege rarely extended to foreign leaders. Inside the meeting, aides including Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov joined discussions, but concrete progress proved elusive.
WATCH: President Trump and Russian President Putin share a laugh in 'The Beast' ahead of their high-stakes summit in Alaska. pic.twitter.com/1pjAjos6Au
— Fox News (@FoxNews) August 15, 2025
Trump conceded: “We haven’t quite got there, but we’ve made some headway. So, there’s no deal until there’s a deal.” Later on Fox News, he repeated that talks were “very warm” but offered no details.
Putin flattered Trump directly, suggesting the war would not have happened if he were president in 2020. “I think that would have been the case,” Putin said, echoing Trump’s own frequent claim. Trump did not challenge him. Instead, he praised Putin as “a strong guy” and added, “I’ve always had a fantastic relationship with President Putin, with Vladimir.”
Time on Putin’s side
With the war grinding on into its fourth year, Russia has been slowly gaining ground in eastern Ukraine. That dynamic gave Putin confidence to emerge from Alaska without making concessions. As Trump put it afterwards: “Now it’s really up to President Zelenskyy to get it done.”
Putin praised the “friendly” tone of the summit and said Washington and Moscow should “turn the page.” He warned European allies not to “create any obstacles” or disrupt “emerging progress through provocation or behind-the-scenes intrigues.”
The optics, however, were more telling than the words. Time magazine described the spectacle as a “nothing-burger outcome” that nevertheless gave Putin exactly what he craved: parity with an American president. “An indicted war criminal who cannot travel to over 100 nations, the Russian President literally had a red carpet rolled out for him on United States territory by an American president. And he didn’t have to give up anything for it — he just had to show up,” Time reported.
For Trump, the absence of a deal was striking. “Deals are what I do,” he once boasted, but in Anchorage he left with only warm words and no agreement. As Time noted, “The self-professed world’s greatest dealmaker left without a deal.”
From public pushback to a reset
Just weeks before the Alaska summit, President Trump had publicly lashed out at Vladimir Putin—threatening crippling tariffs on Russian oil and blasting his erratic behaviour, an about-face from the praise he heaped on Putin during their meeting.
Having earlier accused Moscow of “a lot of bullshit,” Trump warned via NBC News that, “if Russia and I are unable to make a deal on stopping the bloodshed in Ukraine… I am going to put secondary tariffs on oil, on all oil coming out of Russia.” That stern warning was accompanied by reports of renewed US military support to Kyiv, including Patriot missile batteries, intended as leverage and a signal of commitment.
Contrast that with the March Oval Office meeting with President Zelenskyy, which ended in tension. Trump reportedly berated him, calling him “disrespectful” and insinuating he failed to properly appreciate US aid. The promise of a rare-earth minerals deal vanished as the conversation veered into accusations and blame, with Trump telling Zelenskyy, “You don't have the cards right now… You’re gambling with millions of lives.” The meeting ended abruptly, underpinning the lack of grace extended to Ukraine even as it faces existential threats.
By comparison, the Alaska summit marked a dramatic reset in Trump’s posture toward Putin. With public praise, warm words, and symbolic optics, Trump effectively renewed their rapport. That shift placed the burden back on Zelenskyy—Trump declared, “Now it’s really up to President Zelenskyy to get it done”—elevating the pressure on Ukraine to move quickly toward a ceasefire or deal. In doing so, the summit reinforced Putin’s advantage: he regained influence without sacrifice, while Ukraine and its leader were left under renewed diplomatic strain.
Zelenskyy’s response: Calling for a trilateral
After the meeting, Trump hosted a call with several European leaders and said Ukrainian President Zelenskyy would come to Washington on Monday. He added that, if those talks go well, a follow-up meeting with President Putin would be scheduled — “Potentially, millions of people’s lives will be saved.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy quickly moved to reassert Kyiv’s position after being sidelined in Alaska. In a post on X, he said he held a “long and substantive” call with Trump on Saturday, including both one-on-one talks and a wider discussion with European leaders.
We had a long and substantive conversation with @POTUS. We started with one-on-one talks before inviting European leaders to join us. This call lasted for more than an hour and a half, including about an hour of our bilateral conversation with President Trump.
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) August 16, 2025
Ukraine reaffirms… pic.twitter.com/64IPVhtFaB
“Ukraine reaffirms its readiness to work with maximum effort to achieve peace,” Zelenskyy wrote. He confirmed Trump had briefed him on the Putin meeting and said Kyiv supported the idea of a trilateral summit involving Ukraine, the United States, and Russia: “Key issues can be discussed at the level of leaders, and a trilateral format is suitable for this.”
Zelenskyy added that he would meet Trump in Washington on Monday “to discuss all of the details regarding ending the killing and the war.” He stressed that Europeans must be involved “at every stage to ensure reliable security guarantees together with America,” and welcomed “positive signals” from Washington on security commitments.
You may also like
Madhya Pradesh Political Punch: Tussle Over Flag Hoisting, Congress Protest, Ministers Vote
'Very frank' talk with Trump moved Kremlin closer to deciding on Ukraine war: Putin
Loose Women faces another blow amidst ITV cuts and 'disappointing' change
'Saam, daam, dand, bhed...': Sisodia poll plan remarks trigger row; BJP goes to EC
Raunchy period drama adapted from novel banned for 'steamy scenes' streaming now
