by JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, AL (AP) — President Donald Trump said he and Vladimir Putin did not agree to end Russia’s war in Ukraine after meeting on Friday. Putin claimed they had reached an agreement, but the two leaders lavished praise on one another while providing few details about their discussions.
Putin said he and Trump had struck an agreement on Ukraine in brief remarks as they shared a platform during a two-hour summit in Alaska. He also cautioned Europe not to sabotage the early success.
However, Trump went on to say, “There is no deal until there is a deal,” and he announced that he would shortly meet with European leaders and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to update them on the talks.
According to Trump, the discussion was quite fruitful and many points were reached. And the remaining ones are quite few. Not all of them are very important. The first is arguably the most important, but we have a fair chance of succeeding.
“We didn’t get there,” he added.
The high-profile summit ended without an agreement to stop or even halt the bloody battle, which has been going on for more than three years and is the biggest land war in Europe since 1945. Instead of holding a combined news conference as planned, the two each made a brief statement. Trump followed Putin, but both departed without answering any questions.
Putin, whom the United States and a large portion of the world had long been trying to isolate, won just by returning to the United States for the first time in ten years. Additionally, agreeing to travel to Alaska for a meeting with Trump put a halt to the economic sanctions that Trump had threatened to impose unless Moscow put in more effort to end the conflict.
The result might also be advantageous to Russia’s Putin because Friday might just result in additional meetings down the road. With more talks with Trump, Russia’s military will have more time to continue their success on the battlefield without facing penalties.
Putin said Russia and the US should turn the page and resume their collaboration, and he praised Trump for the cordial tone of their call.
He commended Trump for having a clear vision for his goals and genuinely caring about his nation’s success while also demonstrating an awareness of Russia’s own national interests.
Putin stated, “I anticipate that today’s agreements will serve as a benchmark for resolving the Ukrainian issue as well as the start of the restoration of businesslike, pragmatic relations between Russia and the U.S.”
“We’ll speak to you very soon and probably see you again very soon,” Trump said as he concluded his remarks, thanking Putin. Trump remarked that was an interesting one and that he might get criticism, but I could see it occurring, in response to Putin’s smile and offer to meet again in Moscow.
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Trump and Putin begin their summit in Alaska.
