U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday wrapped up a high-stakes meeting in Anchorage, the U.S. state of Alaska, with progress made but no deal reached.
The meeting, held at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in the city, marked the first visit to the United States by a Russian head of state in nearly a decade and the first face-to-face meeting between the two countries’ presidents since 2021.
Initially expected to be a one-on-one meeting, it was opened with a three-on-three format. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and presidential envoy Steve Witkoff joined Trump, while Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and presidential aide Yuri Ushakov accompanied Putin. At a joint press conference afterward, Trump said “many points” had been agreed upon, noting “great progress” had been made, though no formal deal was reached.
Putin said he agreed Ukraine’s security should be ensured, adding that the understanding reached could help pave the way toward peace. Standing together for about 12 minutes before reporters, the two leaders underscored progress but offered no concrete details. “Everything that’s happening is a tragedy for us and a terrible wound,” and Russia is sincerely interested in ending it, Putin said, stressing the need to address the “primary causes” of the conflict and warning Ukraine and European countries not to “throw a wrench in the works.” Putin expressed hope the meeting would serve as “a starting point” not only for resolving the Ukraine issue but also for restoring “business-like” and “pragmatic” relations between Russia and the United States.
He highlighted potential for Russia-U.S. cooperation in trade, high technology, space exploration and the Arctic. Trump said he would soon call Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and European leaders. The press conference ended without taking questions from reporters. Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov explained that both leaders had delivered “exhaustive statements” summarizing the outcome of the talks, which rendered a subsequent media Q&A unnecessary. “This is the very conversation that allows us to confidently move forward together along the path of finding settlement options,” Peskov said. In an interview with Fox News after the meeting, Trump said it is up to Zelensky to strike a ceasefire deal, while indicating that issues such as land swaps and security guarantees had been raised during his summit with Putin.
Trump said there would soon be a meeting set up involving Zelensky, Putin and himself.After their talks, which lasted about three hours, Trump and Putin departed Alaska. Before boarding his plane, Putin visited the Fort Richardson National Cemetery in Anchorage, where he laid flowers on the graves of Soviet soldiers. Kirill Dmitriev, Russia’s top economic envoy, said the United States received Russia “very well” in Alaska and that the two countries would continue building relations despite “resistance.”
