Drawing world’s attention, Trump-Putin summit in Alaska yields no deal
A landmark meeting between President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska concluded with no comprehensive deal to end Russia’s war in Ukraine.
The two leaders met on Anchorage’s Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, marking Putin’s first visit to the U.S. since 2015.
Trump and Putin spent roughly six hours on Alaska soil – 3,360 miles from Washington, D.C., and 4,300 miles from Moscow.
In Alaska, the leaders’ arrival was received with both rallies of support for the prospect of peace between Russia and Ukraine, and protests over the choice of Alaska – a territory owned by Russia until 1867 – as the site of a meeting that excluded Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Though the two leaders said they made progress toward ending the war between Russia and Ukraine, no formal agreement was announced.
Trump called the meeting “extremely productive” but said there remained at least one “significant” point of disagreement.
“There’s no deal until there’s a deal,” Trump said in a press conference that followed a closed-door meeting between the leaders and their top advisors.
Putin, who spoke before Trump during the joint press conference at JBER, began his onstage remarks by commenting on the proximity between Russia and Alaska.
“It only makes sense that we’ve met here, because our countries, though separated by the ocean are close neighbors,” Putin said through a translator, adding that when he greeted Trump upon landing it was by saying, “Good afternoon, dear neighbor.”
Putin is under U.S. sanctions and subject to an arrest warrant by the International Criminal Court for war crimes in Ukraine.
Putin spoke about the “common heritage” between Russia and Alaska, in particular the Lend-Lease Program supplying the Soviet military with American-made weapons during World War II across the Bering Strait.
“We’ll always remember other historical examples when our countries defeated common enemies together,” Putin said.
Alaska is currently home to around 1,000 refugees who fled Ukraine after Russia invaded it in 2022. Trump has paused the program that has allowed them to remain in the U.S.
Alaska’s Gov. Mike Dunleavy welcomed Trump to the state Friday, and called it a “historic day” for Alaska.
Trump “wants to let Alaska know that he loves Alaska,” Dunleavy said in a video posted to social media. “Also, we talked to the president about these rumors that Alaska’s minerals are going to be sold off to the Russians, or Alaska’s gas is going to be transported by the Russians. We spoke with him and some of his staff on the plane, and that’s not true.”
‘Next time in Moscow’
Trump touched down at JBER in Air Force One after 10 a.m. Putin landed on the military base in a Russian plane around 30 minutes later. Pairs of fighter jets flew overhead as his plane landed.
The two leaders disembarked their planes shortly after 11 a.m., walking down separate red carpets and meeting between staged F-22 fighter jets. The two shook hands before stepping on a stage adorned with a large “ALASKA 2025” sign and then entered a vehicle together.
The summit included U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, special envoy Steve Witkoff, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.
On the Russian side, the delegation included Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov, Defense Minister Andrei Belousov, Finance Minister Anton Siluanov and Kirill Dmitriev, the head of Russia’s sovereign wealth fund.
Trump and Putin met behind closed doors for around three hours, accompanied by Rubio, Witkoff, Lavrov and Ushakov. The meeting was followed by a press conference. The two leaders took no questions.
Both leaders left Alaska shortly after 4 p.m.
Trump said that after the summit he would be making calls to follow up on points discussed in Friday’s meeting, and keep talking with the Russians.
“We’ll speak to you very soon,” Trump said.
“Next time in Moscow,” Putin said, the only remarks he made in English.
Trump had previously said he would consider hosting another summit in Alaska, this time with the participation of Zelenskyy.
Putin said that relations between Russia and U.S. had not been so low since during the Cold War, and that the meeting was long overdue.
“Sooner or later we have to amend the situation to move on,” Putin said.
Putin seemed to nod to the summit’s location, saying that “we see that Arctic cooperation is also very possible” once peace is achieved in Ukraine, including strengthening ties between Russia’s far East and America’s westernmost territory.
“Today’s agreements will be the starting point,” Putin said.
Many reporters who attended the press conference were waiting for the chance to ask for details of the meeting, with hands held up as Trump’s remarks wound down. But the pair left the stage quickly, and several journalists in the crowd were audibly surprised at the abrupt departure.
‘Cautiously optimistic’
Upon landing, Trump briefly met with Dunleavy along with all three members of Alaska’s congressional delegation – Rep. Nick Begich, Sen. Lisa Murkowski and Sen. Dan Sullivan.
Sullivan wrote in a social media post ahead of the summit that “Putin is coming to the table because of the threat of serious secondary sanctions.”
“We are in a position of power, bringing him to U.S. soil for peace talks. He sees our military strength, energy dominance, many allies, and a President who knows how to negotiate and make peace,” Sullivan wrote.
After the summit concluded, Murkowski said on social media that she is “cautiously optimistic about the signals that some level of progress was made.”
“It was also encouraging to hear both presidents reference future meetings, which I hope will include Ukraine,” Murkowski said. “Ukraine must be part of any negotiated settlement and must freely agree to its terms as we seek an end to the violent, unlawful war being waged against it.”
The meeting drew hundreds of dignitaries and journalists to the city of Anchorage, filling hotels and university facilities, as Anchorage became the stage for a summit that could shape the future of Russia’s war in Ukraine, and future relations between the U.S. and Russia.
A series of tents was set up near the Arctic Warrior Events Center on JBER for the large contingent of national and international press that had traveled to Anchorage to report on the summit, filled with folding tables and metal chairs – half dedicated to U.S. press, the other half set aside for Russian media.
Correspondents for RT and other Kremlin-allied outlets filmed video clips while their American counterparts did the same. Snippets of Russian, Arabic, Japanese, French and English accents could be heard. Reporters hunched over their laptops and typed at their phones, and some took smoke breaks while they waited for the leaders to arrive.
U.S. Army soldiers, Air Force officers and Marines hovered by doorways.
Ahead of the leaders’ arrival, groups of men in military uniforms with guns climbed to the top of the roof of the one-story building set to host a public event following the summit.
‘A war criminal is on our base’
With the summit taking place entirely on JBER, limited disruptions occurred in town. But multiple protests took place.
Pro-Ukraine demonstrators gathered at JBER’s Government Hill gate Friday morning.
“I think it’s important to send the message that we’re willing to step right up to the gate and condemn the criminality, the aggression,” said Ivan Hodes, who organized the protest there. “The fact that Zelenskyy hasn’t been invited, I think everybody who’s here finds that pretty troubling, and so that’s the message that I’d like to send today.”
A group of Trump supporters and Alaska GOP leaders gathered on the corner of Northern Lights Boulevard and the Seward Highway as the president landed on base Friday. Alaska Attorney General Treg Taylor was there, saying he attended in his personal capacity during his lunch break.
“I hope for a peaceful resolution of that conflict,” Taylor said. “Any war is a horrible thing, right? And so hopefully they’re able to work on a deal that brings peace back to that area in that region.”
At the same demonstration, Big Lake resident Robert Edwards said of the summit, “they’re in it for the prosperity of Russia and America.”
“It just seems pretty historical to have a meeting here … and I don’t, you know, I don’t feel like Putin is all that bad of a person,” Edwards added.
The day prior, the same street corner was packed with hundreds of pro-Ukraine protesters. Many sought to call attention to Putin’s status as a war criminal.
Protesters also gathered at 1:30 p.m. at the Delaney Park Strip to unfurl a massive Ukrainian flag, over 130 feet long and over 60 feet wide. Doug Ward of Anchorage had the flag shipped to Alaska, and hoped it was large enough for Putin to see from his plane.
“We were worried that we wouldn’t have 60 people to hold this flag up, which is the minimum, and it has been absolutely wonderful to see the turnout of probably about 300 people here today,” said Ward.
Also at the Park Strip was Nataliia Gusak, who moved to Alaska last year from Ukraine, where her parents still live. Gusak questioned why the two presidents were meeting without Ukrainian leadership present.
“How can they talk even about the future of independent countries?” said Gusak. “I can’t believe I live in the world like this.”
Jenn Bauer strode onto the Park Strip with a hockey stick held above her head. Taped to the blade of the stick was a “Veterans against Trump” sign and a Ukrainian flag.
“As a veteran, I feel like it’s important to support Ukraine and show that I stand with Ukraine,” said Bauer.
Bauer was among several veterans there protesting the summit. Lori Stender spent 27 years in the U.S. military, both in the Army and the Air Force, and was also at the protest at JBER’s Government Hill gate that morning.
“It’s an embarrassment to me as a military retiree that a war criminal is on our base and invited to our base here. I feel shame that we have done that,” Stender said. “I want to support Ukraine. Ukraine is being attacked by the person that’s sitting 2 miles from us right now.”