16:10 16 August 2025
Alaska Summit Fails to Freeze War, But Ends Putin’s Isolation
The long-awaited meeting between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Anchorage, Alaska, broke Moscow’s Western isolation but delivered no breakthrough on a ceasefire or new sanctions. Markets, which had rallied ahead of the talks, saw little reason for optimism afterward.
The five-hour summit, held at Elmendorf–Richardson Air Base, featured high symbolism, including a joint red-carpet arrival and a B-2 bomber flyover, but concluded without agreements.
“There is no deal until we make one. We are not there yet, but we made some progress,” Trump said at a press statement without taking questions.
Trump later told Fox News he would hold off on fresh sanctions for “two or three weeks,” while urging Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to take the next steps. Analysts noted that Putin gained recognition as a legitimate negotiating partner without concessions.
