Anchorage, Alaska — 15 August 2025
U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin met in Anchorage, Alaska, for their first summit since Trump returned to office. The talks lasted nearly three hours and ended with a joint press conference that touched on history, Ukraine, trade, and bilateral relations.
Putin described the meeting as a natural encounter between “neighbours” divided only by a narrow strait. He recalled Alaska’s historic ties to Russia and the wartime cooperation between the two nations during the Second World War, stressing that both countries had once fought “common enemies of humanity.” He argued that the relationship had reached its lowest point since the Cold War and said it was time to “turn the page and return to cooperation.”
On Ukraine, Putin called the war a “tragedy and a great pain” for Russia, while repeating Moscow’s view that the conflict is tied to fundamental security threats. He said Russia is interested in ending the fighting but insisted that any settlement must address underlying causes and ensure Russia’s security concerns. He also agreed that Ukraine’s security must be guaranteed.
In a striking remark, Putin echoed Trump’s own comments that the war would not have begun if Trump had been president at the time. “I think he is right,” Putin said, adding that the two had built “a good, businesslike, and trustful relationship” which could speed up a settlement.
Putin noted that U.S.–Russia trade has grown by 20 percent under the new administration, calling it symbolic but positive. He highlighted cooperation potential in energy, technology, space, and the Arctic, and thanked Trump for what he described as constructive talks.
Trump characterised the discussions as “very productive,” saying many issues were agreed upon, with only a few major ones unresolved. He confirmed he would brief NATO leaders and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. “There’s no deal until there’s a deal,” Trump said, but added that both he and Putin want to stop the killing of “thousands of people a week” in Ukraine.
The U.S. president also revived his criticism of the “Russia, Russia, Russia hoax,” saying it had made cooperation harder in the past but now there was an opportunity to move forward. He praised Putin’s delegation, described the summit as a step toward future agreements, and ended by suggesting a “next time in Moscow.”
The summit produced no formal agreements or ceasefire, but both leaders signalled that the talks had opened a new channel for dialogue between Washington and Moscow.
