What happened in Alaska - Inside Trump–Putin talks and question of 'deal'
Photo: Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin meet in Alaska (Getty Images)
The meeting between US President Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin in Alaska lasted just under three hours. The main topic was ending the war in Ukraine, though the talks took place in violation of established protocols.
What Trump and Putin discussed, and whether there is a deal, can be read in RBC-Ukraine’s full report below.
Preparation for Trump–Putin meeting
Trump flew to Alaska on Friday morning (afternoon Kyiv time), while Putin began his trip a day earlier, on Thursday, traveling first to Magadan and then onward to Alaska.
Putin’s entourage arrived in the US ahead of time. That morning, videos appeared online showing Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, dressed in a sweatshirt with USSR written on it, posting photos of Alaska’s landscapes. Kremlin envoy Kirill Dmitriev also shared images from the trip.
On board his plane, Trump spoke with reporters, once again expressing hope for a successful meeting. He noted that ahead of the summit, he still gave a 25% chance that the talks could fail. He also said that immediately after speaking with Putin, he planned to call Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European leaders, but added that if the meeting went poorly, he would not make those calls.
The Kremlin kept quiet about the details, but indicated the talks would last six to seven hours. Trump, meanwhile, stressed he would walk out if the conversation went in a direction he didn’t like.
Putin himself remained silent in the lead-up, although the summit was his own request, delivered to Trump via envoy Steve Witkoff. It was only after Witkoff’s trip to Moscow that the idea of a summit began to gain momentum. Earlier, potential venues had included the China summit in September or possibly the Middle East, though no specifics had been set.
Just hours before the meeting, while Trump was speaking about wanting a ceasefire and expressing disappointment if it did not happen that day, and Russian Patriarch Kirill was holding a prayer service, Russian forces struck the outskirts of Dnipro and a market in Sumy. The Russian Defense Ministry quickly claimed it was not responsible.
First protocol misstep and handshake
Around 9 PM, reports appeared that Putin’s plane had already landed in Alaska, while Trump had not yet arrived. Later, Kremlin media clarified that only a support aircraft had landed in Anchorage.
As announced, Trump greeted Putin with a red carpet welcome. However, the US president had flown into Alaska about half an hour earlier than the Russian leader and waited for him aboard Air Force One.
Photo: Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin meet in Alaska (Getty Images)
The two leaders did not speak to journalists. They disembarked from their planes at the same time, walked along the red carpet, and shook hands several times, both at their greeting and again for the cameras. Reporters still managed to call out one question to Putin, asking whether he would stop killing Ukrainians. The Russian leader pretended not to hear.
Although Putin’s car and press secretary Dmitry Peskov were already waiting for him at the plane, he chose instead to ride with Trump to the summit venue.
Trump–Putin meeting without one-on-one format
Just an hour before the scheduled start, plans changed. Instead of a one-on-one, the meeting was held in a three-on-three format: Trump was joined by envoy Steve Witkoff and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, while Putin was accompanied by Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and aide Yuri Ushakov.
Photo: Alaska summit (Getty Images)
Once again, there was no real interaction with the media. The White House briefly showed the start of the meeting, but the broadcast ended within seconds. It later emerged that journalists had been asking Putin uncomfortable questions, which he ignored, pretending not to hear. As a result, the talks began without the previously announced opening briefing.
Brief press conference, no deal reached
The three-on-three meeting lasted 2 hours and 45 minutes, far shorter than the lengthy negotiations many outlets had anticipated. By around 2 AM Kyiv time, Trump and Putin appeared before journalists.
Interestingly, protocol dictated that Trump, as the host, should have spoken first. Instead, Putin opened the press conference. In typical fashion, he began with references to geography and history, then spoke of “good contacts” with Trump and mentioned Witkoff’s visits, before turning to Ukraine. Once again, the Russian leader invoked the idea of a "brotherly people."
"We share the same roots, and everything that is happening is a tragedy and a deep pain for us. Our country is genuinely interested in putting an end to this," he said, adding that "all of Russia’s legitimate concerns must be taken into account."
Photo: Vladimir Putin (Getty Images)
The Russian leader sought to flatter Trump, claiming that if he had been president earlier, the war would never have happened.
"I believe that would have been the case, I confirm it," he said.
Putin also boasted of his "good contact" with Trump, which he argued could help bring the conflict in Ukraine to an end. He even proposed holding the next meeting in Moscow. Trump called the idea interesting but admitted he feared being criticized for it.
The US president kept his remarks brief. He said he would call Zelenskyy and NATO leaders, described the meeting as productive, but acknowledged that key issues remained unresolved.
"I would say a couple of big ones, but we haven't quite got there, we've made some headway. There's no deal until there's a deal," Trump said.
Unusually for him, Trump left the press conference immediately after delivering his statement, without taking questions, a detail noted by American reporters.
