6 Takeaways From Trump's Meeting With Putin

New York Times

15 hours ago

President Trump and President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia met Friday in Anchorage for the first face-to-face meeting between American and Russian leaders since Russia invaded Ukraine in early 2022.
That's about as much as could be gleaned of what took place in their closed-door session, which ended faster than expected and without the cease-fire Mr. Trump had been insisting was necessary to secure a peace deal.
Here are six takeaways from the summit in Anchorage.
The leaders did not reveal an agreement.
After meeting for nearly three hours, Mr. Trump and Mr. Putin left Alaska without announcing any deal or any specific areas where they made progress. Though Mr. Putin said the leaders reached an agreement to 'pave the path towards peace in Ukraine,' Mr. Trump made clear there were still areas of disagreement.
'There's no deal until there's a deal,' he said.
In a brief joint appearance before departing, both leaders alluded in vague terms to making headway, but they did not provide any clarity about what issues they discussed or where they found agreement. Mr. Trump also did not specify where the leaders still disagreed.
'Many points were agreed to, and there are just a very few that are left,' Mr. Trump said. The two men took no questions from reporters, who had been expecting to quiz the two leaders. Several had their hands in the air during what turned out to be Mr. Trump's closing remarks.
Putin secured wins before and after the summit.
Mr. Putin scored a win even before he arrived in the United States. After years of being ostracized by the West, he returned to American soil for the first time in a decade, welcomed by American fighter jets, a red carpet and a ride in the Beast, Mr. Trump's armored car.
And Mr. Putin secured another victory when it concluded, departing the United States without making any major concessions while maintaining a warm rapport with Mr. Trump. During the last several months, the American president had been growing frustrated with Mr. Putin, seeing the Russian leader as the hurdle to a cease-fire and an eventual peace deal to end the war in Ukraine.
'He's very nice to us all the time, but it turns out to be meaningless,' Mr. Trump told reporters at the White House in early July.
But on Friday, he offered no hint of frustration with his Russian counterpart, even as Mr. Trump acknowledged they had not reached an agreement.
'I've always had a fantastic relationship with President Putin, with Vladimir,' Mr. Trump said.
Trump showed deference to Putin.
Despite the fact that the meeting took place on U.S. soil, Mr. Trump allowed Mr. Putin to speak first at their joint appearance. The Russian leader used the opportunity to offer his own view of the conflict in Ukraine and what he claimed were the 'root causes' of Russia's invasion.
His remarks went unchallenged by a smiling Mr. Trump, who has long favored authoritarian leaders — 'the strong ones,' as he has put it.
Mr. Trump, who is determined to get a Nobel Peace Prize, made no mention of his previous insistence that there needed to be an immediate cease-fire as the outcome of the meeting.
If not, Mr. Trump told reporters days ago, 'there will be very severe consequences.' It remains to be seen if such consequences, such as the secondary sanctions he has threatened, will be realized.
Trump got fodder for his grievances.
Mr. Trump did not appear to come away with much — at least, not much that was clear when their meeting ended far earlier than anticipated — but he did get two things he valued.
One was the chance to once again, and with the world watching, denounce the investigation into whether his campaign conspired with Russians in 2016, when, according to the U.S. intelligence community, Russians interfered in the election. Standing feet from Mr. Putin, Mr. Trump proclaimed it a 'hoax,' and a shared and unfair torment for both men.
For his part, Mr. Putin praised his counterpart and said that he could 'confirm' something Mr. Trump has repeatedly claimed: that Russia's incursion into Ukraine in early 2022 would not have happened were Mr. Trump in office at the time.
Left unanswered was why Mr. Putin is pressing ahead with his war — and demand for land — now that Mr. Trump is back in power and calling for it to stop.
Trump appears open to visiting Russia.
When the hasty planning began for the historic summit in Alaska, some observers wondered whether — given the state's proximity to Russia of less than 60 miles — Mr. Trump would make a ceremonial visit by stepping into the neighboring country.
It was not to be. But one person close to Mr. Trump indicated days before the trip that a Moscow visit might be possible down the road. So perhaps it wasn't simply a joke when, in their final moments at the podium, Mr. Putin suggested that the two leaders next meet in his capital city.
Mr. Trump seemed amenable. 'Oooh, that's an interesting one,' he said, raising his eyebrows. 'I don't know, I'll get a little heat on that one. But I could see it possibly happening.'
The last time a U.S. president traveled to Russia was in 2013, when President Barack Obama visited for the Group of 20 summit in St. Petersburg. That year also appears to be the last year that Mr. Trump was in Russia, as well, when he visited to host the Miss Universe pageant.
Ahead of the pageant, Mr. Trump, who over several decades sought building projects in Russia, tried to drum up interest in the event, posting on social media, 'Do you think Putin will be going to The Miss Universe Pageant in November in Moscow — if so, will he become my new best friend?'
Mr. Putin did not attend, although he reportedly sent a gift.
Zelensky was left on the sidelines for now.
The person with the most at stake on Friday, President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine, was left watching on television with the rest of the world.
Mr. Zelensky was not invited to the summit, though Mr. Trump said he would call him and NATO leaders after he left Alaska to give them a readout of his meeting. In an interview with the Fox News host Sean Hannity after the meeting, Mr. Trump insisted he believed that there would be a meeting between Mr. Zelensky and Mr. Putin, and that the American leader may join as well.
Without a deal in hand, Mr. Zelensky and his country are enmeshed in a debilitating war with Russia, without the robust assurances of ongoing U.S. military support that they received under the Biden administration. In recent days, Mr. Zelensky has criticized Moscow for continuing its attacks against Ukraine as a sign that Mr. Putin has no interest in a cease-fire or a long-term peace deal.
'The war continues, and it is precisely because there is neither an order nor a signal that Moscow is preparing to end this war,' Mr. Zelensky said in a video just before Mr. Trump and Mr. Putin met. 'On the day of negotiations, they are killing, as well. And that speaks volumes.'