Trump and Putin’s Historic Meeting in Alaska Results in ‘No Deal’ on Ending Ukraine War but US President Says ‘Great Progress’ Was Made

President Donald Trump kept everyone in suspense as he shared no specifics and avoided questions about his “very productive meeting” with Russian President Vladimir Putin regarding Ukraine’s future.

What was evident, however, is that the Friday meeting at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska, did not result in an immediate ceasefire or peace agreement to end the war in Ukraine. “We’ve made some headway. There’s no deal until there’s a deal,” Trump said, standing in front of a backdrop that read, “Pursuing Peace.” The discussions appeared to yield no meaningful progress toward a ceasefire in Europe’s deadliest conflict in eight decades, a goal Trump had set ahead of the summit.

No Peace, No End of War

In a highly unusual gesture, Trump allowed Putin take the floor first at what was presented as a joint press conference — and then left without responding to any questions, choosing instead to shake Putin’s hand again before strolling offstage.

The entire press event lasted only 12 minutes, despite the two having spent over three hours in private talks beforehand.

“I’m going to start making a few phone calls and tell them what happened. But we had an extremely productive meeting, and many points were agreed to, and there are just a very few that are left,” Trump said.

“Some are not that significant. One is probably the most significant,” Trump added.

In an interview with Sean Hannity, recorded in the same room where the summit took place, the Fox News host asked the president if he would reveal to him what that single issue was. “No, I’d rather not,” Trump replied. “I guess somebody is going to go public with it, they’ll figure it out, but no, I don’t want to do that. I want to see if we can get it done.”

Trump mentioned to Hannity that Putin appeared willing to consider a three-way summit involving Zelensky.

In his remarks, Putin praised Trump, agreeing with his view of the Ukraine war and adding that the conflict would never have taken place if Trump had been in power.

“Today when President Trump’s saying that if he was the president back then there will be no war. I’m quite sure it would indeed be so, I can confirm that,” Putin said in Russian through a translator.

Putin Blames Biden for War

Putin also pointed the finger at former President Joe Biden for the breakdown in U.S.-Russia relations, rather than taking responsibility for his February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, a key American ally.

“I’d like to remind you that in 2022, during the last contact with the previous administration, I tried to convince my previous American colleague that the situation should not be brought to the point of no return when it would come to hostilities,” Putin said, adding it was a “big mistake.”

Putin noted that ties between the U.S. and Russia had deteriorated “to their lowest level since the Cold War.”

“I think that’s not benefiting our countries and the world as a whole,’ Putin said. ‘It’s apparent that sooner or later we had to amend the situation and move on from the confrontation to dialogue.”

However, much of Putin’s rhetoric focused on the past, underscoring the sharp divide between the U.S. and Russia on key matters necessary for reaching a ceasefire in Ukraine. The Russian president also stood firm on his claims that the invasion of Ukraine was justified.

“As I’ve said the situation in Ukraine has to do with frontal threats of our security,” Putin said.

“At the same time we’re convinced, that in order to make this settlement lasting and long-term, we need to eliminate all the primary roots, the primary causes of that conflict,” the Russian leader added.

Putin added that the U.S. must “take into account all legitimate concerns in Russia,” while also agreeing with President Trump’s point during the meeting that “Ukraine’s security should naturally be guaranteed.”

When Putin launched his so-called “special military operation” in February 2022 — now continuing for three and a half years — he justified it by alleging that Ukrainians were being “subjected to abuse and genocide” by their democratically elected government, which under President Volodymyr Zelensky had grown increasingly aligned with the West.

A former KGB officer, Putin has long aimed to expand Russia’s borders to more closely mirror those of the Soviet Union.