Trump, Putin tout progress to end war in Ukraine, but no cease-fire announced
Aug. 15 (UPI) -- U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, after a 3 1/2-hour face-to-face summit in Alaska on Friday, said they made progress in reaching a deal on peace in Ukraine, though no cease-fire was announced.
The two leaders appeared before reporters at 3 p.m. local time but took no questions from them. Their meeting began at 11:30 a.m. Alaska time.
They also didn't mention a key issue: whether Russia or Ukraine will give up acquired land. But when asked later in person by Sean Hannity on Fox News whether they agreed on a land swap, Trump said: "Those are points that we negotiated and those are points that we largely have agreed on. Ukraine has to agree to it. Maybe they'll say no."
He also told Hannity that he would hold off on imposing more sanctions or "other severe consequences" against Russia if the war wasn't halted. Earlier this month he threatened harsh sanctions.
Neither president gave any details to reporters.
"We had an extremely productive meeting, and many points were agreed to," Trump said, speaking for 3 1/2 minutes. "We didn't get there, but we have a very good chance of getting there."
He said: "There's no deal until there's a deal."
Putin, speaking first for about eight minutes and 30 seconds, said an accord to end the 3 1/2-year-old war will "pave the path toward peace in Ukraine."
The agreement must deal with security.
"As I've said, the situation in Ukraine has to do with fundamental threats to our security," Putin said. "I agree with President Trump, as he has said today, that naturally, the security of Ukraine should be ensured as well. Naturally, we have prepared to work on that," he said.
Missing from the summit: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. He and his aides were not invited, though Trump has said he hopes for a second meeting that will include him.
Putin said Friday that he suggested the next meeting to take place in Moscow.
"That's an interesting one, I'll get a little heat on that one," Trump said. "But I could see it possibly happening."
Trump said he will discuss details of the first meeting with allies and Zelensky.
"I will call up NATO in a little while. I will call up the various people that I think are appropriate,"Trump said. "And I'll, of course, call up President Zelensky and tell him about today's meeting. It's ultimately up to them."
Putin told Ukrainian and European leaders not to intervene.
"We expect that Kyiv and European capitals will perceive all this in a constructive manner and will not create any obstacles, will not make attempts to disrupt the emerging progress through provocations and behind-the-scenes intrigues," he said.
Oleksiy Goncharenko, a member of Ukraine's parliament, posted Friday on Telegram: "It seems that Putin has gained more time. No cease-fire or de-escalation has been agreed upon."
John Bolton, Trump's national security adviser during his first term, told CNN: "Trump did not lose, but Putin clearly won. Trump didn't come away with anything, except more meetings.
"He escaped sanctions. He's not facing a cease-fire. The next meeting is not set. ... It's far from over, but I'd say Putin achieved most of what he wanted. Trump achieved very little."
The two leaders praised each other.
"Our negotiations took place in a respectful, constructive and mutually respectful atmosphere, were very thorough and useful," Putin said.
Trump said: "We had many, many tough meetings, good meetings," and "always had a fantastic relationship with President Putin."
He said their relationship was hurt by investigations during his first term in office about Moscow's interference in the 2016 election.
"We were interfered with by the Russia, Russia, Russia hoax," Trump said. "I've made it a little bit tougher to deal with, but he understood it."
In the interview with Hannit, Trump said: "So I think the meeting was a 10 in the sense that we got along great. And it's good when, you know, two big powers get along, especially when they're nuclear powers."
Trump and Putin stood in front of blue backdrop that read "Pursuing Peace."
It was the seventh face-to-face meeting between the two leaders.
The summit was originally supposed to be one-on-one with interpreters.
During the president's flight to Alaska, press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters aboard Air Force One about a change in plans for the meeting, saying there wouldn't be an expected one-on-one meeting -- with interpreters -- between Trump and Putin. The two men met that way at their meeting on July 16, 2018, in Helsinki, Finland.
Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 14, 2022, when Joe Biden was the U.S. president. Putin has had two terms as president since 2000. He was prime minister from 2008 to 2012.
Putin told reporters he agreed with Trump that the war wouldn't have happened if Trump were president then.
He also said Trump will "help us bring back business life and pragmatic relations between Russia and the U.S."
In the summit, Trump was joined by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who also is Trump's national security adviser, as well as U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff.
Putin was accompanied by Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Yuri Ushakov, an aide on foreign policy issues.
After the bilateral portion of the summit, the delegations were to meet for lunch, but The Wall Steet Journal reported it didn't happen. Trump's delegation included Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and chief of staff Susie Wiles.
Before Putin departed, he laid flowers on the graves of Soviet soldiers at Fort Richardson Memorial Cemetery. They died while bringing equipment from the United States to the Soviet Union during World War II.
The U.S. purchased Alaska from the Russian Empire in 1867 for $7.2 million. Alaska became a U.S. state in 1959.
After Putin's plane departed, Trump left around 4:20 p.m. and headed back to Washington, D.C.
Leaders' arrival
Their planes both arrived at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, which is geographically close to Russia. It is a U.S. Army and Air Force base.
Trump first arrived aboard Air Force One after flying 4,000 miles from Joint Base Andrews in Maryland. The nonstop flight lasted six hours. Before the flight, he posted on Truth Social: 'HIGH STAKES!!!
About 30 minutes later, Putin got off an Ilyushin II-96, the primary aircraft in the Russian presidential fleet. His flight lasted 12 hours from Russia's Magadan Airport in the far eastern nation. The party broke their journey for a "full-fledged regional trip," including a visit to an industrial plant and a meeting with the regional governor, according to the Kremlin.
Trump didn't leave the plane until Putin's jet landed. While on the ground, he greeted Alaska Sens. Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan, and Gov. Mike Dunleavy, all Republicans.
Trump met Putin near his plane, and they shook hands.
They went on a red carpet and posed for a photo. They didn't answer any questions from reporters. Putin didn't answer whether he would "stop killing civilians," appearing to gesture that he couldn't hear the question.
Putin joined Trump in the U.S. president's limousine, known as the Beast, as they departed from the tarmac. They both sat in the back of the vehicle.
American fighter jets flew overhead.
In war-torn Ukraine, Zelensky before the summit urged an end to the war in a video post on X on Friday.
"On the day of negotiations, the Russians are killing, as well," he said. "And that speaks volumes. ... Ukraine is ready to work as productively as possible to bring the war to an end, and we count on a strong position from America. Everything will depend on this -- the Russians factor in American strength. Make no mistake -- strength."
He added: "Russia must end the war that it itself started and has been dragging out for years. The killings must stop. A meeting of leaders is needed -- at the very least, Ukraine, America, and the Russian side -- and it is precisely in such a format that effective decisions are possible. Security guarantees are needed. Lasting peace is needed. Everyone knows the key objectives. I want to thank everyone who is helping to achieve real results."
Unease over the staging of a summit on Ukraine without Zelensky also showed little sign of abating, with protests in the streets of Anchorage in support of Kyiv and questioning Trump's ability to negotiate a deal with Putin.
Ukrainians were also on the streets of Kyiv, demonstrating outside the U.S. embassy, demanding the return of their loved ones held by Russia over "land swaps" envisaged in any peace deal.
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