Trump admits he and Putin did not reach key agreements

The highly anticipated summit between US President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, has come and gone, with no apparent tangible result on the ground.

The outcome goes in the face of Trump's now-notorious claim that he would end the Ukraine conflict within 24 hours of returning to the White House.

However, Putin may well be satisified that he received red-carpet treatment from the US after years out in the diplomatic cold following his country's full-scale invasion of Ukraine launched in early 2022.

The press conference following the summit on Friday yielded no details on what the two leaders had discussed, and no reporters' questions were taken by either Putin or Trump.

Trump spoke only of "some headway" having been made, adding: "There's no deal till there's a deal."

Putin, in his turn, supported Trump's oft-made contention that the war in Ukraine would not have begun if the latter had been US leader at the time instead of Joe Biden.

The Russian president even suggested that a next meeting could occur in Moscow, with Trump replying that he might "get a little heat on that one" but that he could "possibly see it happening."

Trump was slightly more forthcoming in an interview with right-wing US broadcaster Fox News, telling host Sean Hannity that he discussed potential "land swaps" and security guarantees for Ukraine with Putin.

"I think those are points that we negotiated, and those are points that we largely have agreed on," he said.

"I think we're pretty close to a deal," he said. "Ukraine has to agree to it. Maybe they'll say no."

When asked by Hannity what he would advise Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to do, Trump said, "Gotta make a deal."

"Look, Russia is a very big power, and they're not," Trump added.

The issue of "land swaps" between Russia and Ukraine seems problematic in view of the fact that Ukraine now holds no legally Russian territory. Zelenskyy has ruled out ceding Moscow any of his country.

The sanctions with which Trump threatened Russia ahead of the summit have also not eventuated, despite Putin ignoring the US leader's cease-fire deadline earlier this month.

According to the White House, Trump has now contacted Zelenskyy and NATO leaders to inform them about the summit.

Despite the summit of the US and Russian leaders in Alaska to discuss ways of ending the Ukraine conflict, Russia continued its aerial attacks on its neighbor overnight, while Ukraine responded in kind.

Ukraine's air force said Russia targeted the Sumy, Donetsk, Chernihiv and Dnipropetrovsk regions with 85 drones, 61 of which were destroyed by air defense units.  

Russia's RIA news agency, in its turn, reported that 29 Ukrainian drones were intercepted and destroyed overnight, including 10 over the Rostov region, which borders on Ukraine.

Putin shares the view that allowing voters to send in ballots by mail undermines the validity of elections, Trump has told a US private TV broadcaster.

"Vladimir Putin, smart guy, said you can't have an honest election with mail-in voting," Trump told Fox News Channel's "Hannity" after the two leaders met in Alaska. "He said there's not a country in the world that uses it now."

In fact, nearly 36 countries, including Germany, allow some form of postal vote, while Trump himself has voted by mail in some previous elections and urged his supporters to do so in 2024, when he won the White House again.

However, Trump has claimed there was fraud in the 2020 election, which he lost to Democrat Joe Biden, blaming his loss partly on the expansion in postal voting during the coronavirus pandemic.

Elections in Russia in recent years have been deemed neither free nor fair by many independent observers. Putin was elected to another term in office with 87% of the vote in a 2024 election that drew widespread allegations of vote rigging.

The Alaska summit between US President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin was a clear win for the latter, according to the former head of the Munich Security Conference, Wolfgang Ischinger.

"Alaska: Putin got his red carpet with Trump, Trump nothing," Ischinger wrote on X, formerly Twitter. 

"As was to be feared: no cease-fire, no peace. No real progress — very clearly 1:0 for Putin — no new sanctions. For the Ukrainians: nothing. For Europe: profoundly disappointing," Ischinger added.

Ischinger was the German ambassador to the United States from 2001 to 2006, and was the chairman of the Munich Security Conference from 2008 to 2022.

US first lady Melania Trump raised the plight of children in Ukraine and Russia in a personal letter to Russian President Vladimir Putin, two White House officials said.

Officials told Reuters that President Donald Trump hand-delivered the letter to Putin during their talks in Alaska, with Slovenian-born Melania Trump not present on the trip to Anchorage.

The officials would not divulge the contents of the letter other than to say it mentioned the abductions of children resulting from the war in Ukraine.

The existence of the letter had not been reported previously. Ukraine has called the abduction of tens of thousands of its children to Russia or Russian-occupied territories without the consent of their families or guardians a war crime that meets the definition of genocide under the United Nations treaty.

In response, Moscow has previously said it has been protecting vulnerable children from a war zone.

The United Nations Human Rights Office has said Russia has inflicted suffering on millions of Ukrainian children and violated their rights since its full-scale invasion of Ukraine begun in 2022.

Trump and Putin met for 2 1/2 hours at a US military base in Anchorage but failed to reach a ceasefire deal in the war in Ukraine.

It could have been so much worse. That’s the view from most staying up late into the night to watch the Alaska talks between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin from Kyiv, according to DW's correspondent in the Ukrainian capital, Nick Connolly.

While we still haven't heard Trump's full version of events, it seems like the thing Ukrainians feared most hasn't happened: a demand for Ukraine to hand over territory as a prerequisite to any deal.

Instead, it seemed like Putin wanted to talk about anything but Ukraine, ranging from World War II to business. And when he did talk about the war he unleashed in Ukraine, he also referenced history.

Putin said that the root causes of this war would need to be addressed. That is shorthand for reversing Ukraine's and Eastern Europe’s Western integration. Maybe even reversing NATO expansion. It is also exactly what Putin was talking about when he invaded Ukraine in 2022.

Until his demands are met in full, it seems that Putin is in no hurry to end this war. This puts him at odds with his hosts. Many in Ukraine are now wondering if, after today's warm words and red carpet treatment, Trump might try the stick — in the form of new sanctions — rather than just the carrot to get Putin to finally budge.

US President Donald Trump told Fox News' Sean Hannity that he spoke "very sincerely" with Russian President Vladimir Putin following their joint press conference.

"He made a very good speech and I also finished it up," Trump told Hannity. "Right after that, we spoke very sincerely. I think he wants to see it done."

The US leader went on to say that Putin would set up a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in an effort to try to reach a ceasefire, but added it was up to latter to accept a deal.

"I think we are pretty close to a deal. Now look, Ukraine has to agree to it," Trump told Fox News. 

When asked what advice he would give Zelenskyy after the Alaska meeting, he replied: "Make a deal," describing Russia as a "very big power."

"Now, it's really up to President Zelenskyy to get it done," Trump added. "And I would also say the European nations, they have to get involved a little bit. But it's up to President Zelenskyy ... And if they'd like, I'll be at that next meeting."

On how close a deal might be, Trump said: "I always say, if I'm really close, I say 50:50, because so many things can happen. But I think President Putin would like to solve the problem."

US President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin have both left Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, with Air Force One departing a minute after Putin's plane.

The talks between the two leaders ended after only 2 1/2hours, with many having expected discussions to stretch to six-seven hours.

Seemingly little progress was made during the talks over bringing an end to Russia's war in Ukraine.

Trump used the presidents' joint press conference to admit that there were a "few points we could not agree on."

According to dpa news agency, the German government is going to take a wait-and-see approach following the meeting between US President Donald Trump and Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin in Alaska.

German government circles in Berlin say Chancellor Friedrich Merz is being kept informed about developments in Anchorage.

Trump promised to update his European counterparts on the results of his discussions with Putin, though he did not specify when he would do so.

The world was watching — and saw nothing but a very uncomfortable US President and his Russian counterpart taking over the room, according to DW's Washington Bureau Chief Ines Pohl.

Trump and Putin ended their highly anticipated meeting, and it seemed to yield very little of substance. There was a real lack of meaningful outcomes, with no concrete agreements on key issues like security guarantees for Ukraine or a potential ceasefire, leaving many of us skeptical about any real progress. 

It felt like Putin managed to control the narrative, achieving a symbolic victory just by being there, while Trump’s hesitant demeanor allowed Putin to overshadow him, which was surprising given Trump’s usual flair for the dramatic. 

There are also growing concerns about the long-term implications for European security. This situation feels eerily reminiscent of past negotiations that ignored local voices, raising fears that Ukraine’s interests could be sidelined in favor of a deal that benefits both the US and Russia. 

Moving forward, it’s crucial for Trump to team up with NATO allies and put pressure on Putin for a ceasefire to ensure some level of stability.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has boarded his plane to return home following talks with US counterpart Donald Trump.

As the press conference between the two leaders at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson came to an end, Trump thanked Putin and said he would "probably see you again very soon."

Putin responded in English, saying: "Next time in Moscow." The remark saw Trump claim it could cause him some trouble. 

"Oh, that's an interesting one," Trump said. "I'll get a little heat on that one, but I could see it possibly happening."

During the leaders' joint press conference in Alaska, US President Donald Trump did not offer much more insight into how his talks with President Vladimir Putin over Russia's war in Ukraine went.

Trump said that, although the meeting was "productive," there were a few points on which the two sides could not agree.

"Some of the points are not so significant and one is very significant," Trump told a press conference at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson. "There are a couple of big ones that we haven’t quite got there on, but we’ve made some headway."

Talking about his next steps, Trump added: "I will call up NATO, the various people I think are important, and of course President Zelenskyy, and tell him about the meeting."

At the end of the press conference, during which no questions were allowed, Trump said that a resolution to end the war would come soon and added, "There are thousands of people being killed every day, and I know everyone wants that to stop. I know President Putin wants that to stop."

At the joint press conference with US President Donald Trump, Russian President Vladimir Putin used his speech to praise the closeness of the two countries in terms of distance.

Reading from his notes, Putin said that the relationship between the US and Russia had fallen to an all-time low under the previous US administration.

"President Trump and I have good direct contact," Putin said. "We have spoken many times. We have spoken frankly on the phone. One of the central issues was the issue around Ukraine."

The Russian leader acknowledged the current US administration's and President Trump's personal commitment to facilitating a resolution to the Ukrainian conflict.

Addressing the talks on ending Russia's war in Ukraine that the two held in Alaska, Putin said: "Our negotiations have been held in a constructive atmosphere of respect. We have had very thorough negotiations that were very useful."

The talks between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his US counterpart Donald Trump in Alaska have ended, the Kremlin said.

Trump and Putin's high-stakes summit over Moscow's war in Ukraine had stretched into its third hour on Friday, as the two world leaders sought a way to bring the deadliest conflict in Europe in 80 years to a close.

Officials said the meeting concluded after more than two and a half hours. The pair are due to hold a joint press conference shortly.

As Vladimir Putin was greeted by a smiling Donald Trump, DW's Washington Bureau Chief Ines Pohl called the meeting between the Russian and US presidents "historic."

"It is, of course, a historic moment," she said. "Putin is considered a war criminal and would be arrested in pretty much any other country.

"Here he was greeted by the president of the United States, at an army base which was built by the United States to defend against Russian aggression," Pohl added.

"What stood out was how friendly they were to each other; they were both clapping their hands and laughing," she said.

While the monentous meeting between Putin and Trump was underway at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Pohl noted that life for Alaskans was largely unaffected.

"In Alaska, people don’t really care," she said. "Many people don’t even really know what is happening. What’s surprising, there was a protest yesterday with a couple of hundred people and we didn’t see any police presence."

"There are a couple of pro-Ukraine supporters outside the military base today and 20 minutes away in the city of Anchorage there is a group of pro-Trump supporters but everything is peaceful and there is very little police presence," Pohl said.