Saturday, 16 August 2025
Saturday, 16 August 2025
Donald Trump welcomed Vladimir Putin back to the United States for the first time in 10 years, smiling and shaking hands before the two retreated into closed-door talks. By the time they separated, the questions about what had been achieved still remained.
The world's media gathered in the room with the US and Russian Presidents had been led to expect a press conference; instead, the two leaders gave statements and took no questions from reporters.
But here are five key takeaways from the Alaska summit.
Red carpet, ride together for Putin
Donald Trump rolled out the red carpet for Vladimir Putin.
The day began with a ceremony; a red carpet, handshakes, smiles, and American military aircraft overhead. Trump left no pomp and show to give a grand welcome to his Russian counterpart.
Trump and Putin then stepped into the back seat of the presidential limousine, speaking informally as they were driven to their meeting on the future of the Russia–Ukraine conflict.
This sort of display is usually reserved for US allies. This time it was extended to the leader who launched the largest land war in Europe since World War II.
When the talks ended, the mood was more subdued. The two leaders stood at a podium before a backdrop marked “Pursuing peace,” praising progress and “understanding,” but took no questions and revealed little about what was discussed.
A for America, B for B-2 bomber
Military strength was flexed at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage.
A US B-2 Spirit Stealth Bomber, accompanied by fighter jets, flew over as the Presidents walked on the red carpet toward the stage. A 22-second clip of Putin glancing upward at the bomber quickly went viral.
The B-2, valued at $2.1 billion per unit, is the most expensive aircraft ever built. Designed by Northrop Grumman, only 21 were produced after the collapse of the Soviet Union shortened its production run.
The bomber can fly more than 6,000 nautical miles without refueling, giving Washington the capacity to reach almost any global target, a capability demonstrated in missions from Missouri to Afghanistan, Libya, and most notably recently in Iran.
Lessons from Putin on how to ensure fair elections
After the summit ended, Trump told Fox News that Putin had questioned the 2020 US election.
“Vladimir Putin said something – one of the most interesting things. He said, ‘Your election was rigged because you have mail-in voting,’” Trump said.
According to Trump, Putin added: “‘Mail-in voting, every election – no country has mail-in voting. It’s impossible to have mail-in voting and have honest elections.’ And he said that to me. It was very interesting because we talked about 2020. He said, ‘You won that election by so much and that’s how he got it.’”
Trump also quoted Putin as saying: “And if you would have won, we wouldn’t have had a war. You’d have all these millions of people alive now instead of dead.”
Trump has repeatedly and without evidence claimed that voter fraud cost him the 2020 race. Now it seems he is taking pointers from Putin on how to ensure ‘fair’ elections.
Ukraine issue left unresolved
The nearly three-hour meeting in Alaska concluded without a truce or plan for Ukraine. Both leaders described the discussion as constructive but declined to answer reporters’ questions.
“We’ve made some headway,” Trump said. “There’s no deal until there’s a deal.”
Putin said the conflict represented a core security issue for Russia.
“As you well know and understand, one of the central issues has become the situation around Ukraine. We see the desire of the U.S. administration and President Trump personally to facilitate the resolution of the Ukrainian conflict, his desire to delve into the essence and understand its origins.”
He continued: “We have always considered and consider the Ukrainian people, I have said this many times, brotherly, no matter how strange that may sound in today’s conditions. We have the same roots and everything that is happening for us is a tragedy and a great pain. Therefore, our country is sincerely interested in putting an end to this.”
Putin said that any settlement must address “all of Russia’s legitimate concerns” and restore “a fair balance in the security sphere in Europe and the world as a whole.”
Later, Trump told Fox News’ Sean Hannity that he would pause imposing tariffs on China for purchasing Russian oil, citing “progress with Putin.”
In short, Putin gets what he wanted
Putin’s return to US soil after years was itself a symbolic gain. He arrived to military honors, the red carpet, and a ride in the Beast, the US president’s armored limousine.
He departed having made no concessions and while maintaining cordial ties with Trump.
Only weeks earlier, Trump had expressed frustration, saying: “He’s very nice to us all the time, but it turns out to be meaningless.”
By the summit’s end, that frustration was visible in global media headlines. “Trump Rolled Out the Red Carpet for Putin, Got Little Back,” said The Wall Street Journal, the gospel according to conservative Americans.
