Trump and Putin meeting in Alaska ends without concrete deal on Russia-Ukraine war

The meeting between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska, held to discuss ending the Russia-Ukraine war, ended without a concrete agreement, though both sides said there was some progress.

Trump and Putin appeared together on stage for about 10 minutes. Both leaders hinted that their private talks had moved forward, but no final deal was reached.

Putin said he was “sincere” about wanting to end the war, calling it a “tragedy.” He stressed the need to address the “root causes” of the conflict and warned Ukraine and Europe not to break off talks. He added that this meeting should be seen only as a starting point for finding a solution.

Putin described his relationship with Trump as “professional.” He also agreed with Trump’s earlier remark that the war would not have started if Trump had remained in office after the 2020 US election.

Trump admitted that disagreements still remain. He said some progress was made, but the talks did not reach the expected outcome. “Until there is an agreement, there is no agreement,” Trump stated, adding that many points had been settled while a few were still unresolved. He did not reveal the details of those points.

Trump also mentioned that he would soon hold phone talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and European leaders. “In the end, the final decision is up to them,” he said.

Before leaving, Trump expressed hope of meeting Putin again soon. Putin responded by saying, “Next time, let’s meet in Moscow.”

The two leaders talked privately for about two and a half hours before appearing together briefly on stage.