With fighter jets, a red carpet and a hopeful slogan — “Pursuing Peace” — plastered on the wall, President Donald Trump welcomed his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin for a summit in Alaska on Friday whose results remained entirely unclear once it abruptly ended.
After meeting for nearly three hours, the two men emerged to proclaim progress. But they exited their scheduled news conference without explaining what, exactly, they have achieved.
One thing that was evident: There was no deal made.
“There were many, many points that we agreed on – most of them, I would say,” Trump said, speaking after Putin. “A couple of big ones that we haven’t quite gotten there, but we’ve made some headway.”
“There’s no deal until there’s a deal,” Trump pronounced.
He and Putin departed the stage without answering questions.
It was an inconclusive end to a showy summit that — for all its unknowns — did seem to decisively welcome Putin back into the diplomatic fold.
Still, for all of the pomp and protocol, the indications of how difficult Trump’s task will be were evident from the moment the meeting began.
Just as the presidents were greeting each other on the Elmendorf Air Force Base tarmac, alerts went out in Ukraine about incoming Russian drones and aircraft — a sign of Putin’s intent to keep up his war, even as Trump was lavishing him with trappings of respect on US soil.
Here are key takeaways from Friday’s summit in Anchorage:
Progress but not a deal
Both Trump and Putin offered a vague accounting of a meeting that stretched for hours.
“We had an extremely productive meeting, and many points were agreed to,” Trump told reporters. “There are just a very few that are left. Some are not that significant. One is probably the most significant, but we have a very good chance of getting there. We didn’t get there, but we have a very good chance of getting there.”
It was many words that illuminated close to nothing about how close an end to the war in Ukraine might be.
Armchair patriot. Believes in the free market, cold beer, and that there’s always a guy named George behind every CNN segment.
Former remote-throwing champion turned #1 couch commentator on liberal panic in the media. Born in Texas (or so his mug says), he earned a degree in Fake Newsology & Beer Philosophy from YouTube University.
