▲ On August 15th, local time, 2025, at around 11 a.m., U.S. President Trump and Russian President Putin met at the airport of the Elmendorf-Richardson Joint Military Base in Anchorage, Alaska. Image from Visual China
On August 15th, local time, in Anchorage, Alaska, the “Trump-Putin Meeting” concluded. According to news reports, after the meeting, U.S. President Trump and Russian President Putin departed separately.
Russian President Putin stated that the talks were conducted in a constructive and mutually respectful atmosphere, and Trump also expressed that significant progress had been made. However, no ceasefire agreement, which was most expected by the outside world, was reached at the end of the meeting.
“Extremely unusual” welcome ceremony:
No translation on the “Beast”
The opening of the summit was described as “rare” and “extremely unusual” by the outside world.
▲ U.S. F-35 fighter jets flying over the Elmendorf-Richardson Joint Military Base
According to reports, the United States made a “big show” for this meeting. Live footage showed that as the two leaders walked on the red carpet, four F-22 “Raptor” stealth fighters were parked on both sides, and a B-2 “Ghost” bomber flew overhead. Some reports described this as a “display of force,” specifically pointing out that these fighters were developed to counter the Soviet Union; however, some American media saw it as a sign of Trump’s high-profile welcome for Putin.
Then, another “unusual” scene occurred. According to reports, Putin was invited by Trump to join him in the U.S. President’s official vehicle, the “Beast,” without a translator. Some reports also noticed a detail: Putin’s own car was waiting on the tarmac, which might suggest that the co-ride was not pre-arranged.
Regarding this welcome ceremony, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zarahova wrote on social media, “For years, they have been talking about isolating Russia, and today they saw the red carpet welcoming the Russian president.”
From “one-on-one” to “three-on-three”:
After the magnificent opening ceremony, the real dialogue began in the meeting room. The talks were held in a closed-door “three-on-three” format and lasted for nearly three hours.
After the meeting, Russian Ambassador to the United States达尔奇耶夫told the media that the atmosphere of the talks was “overall positive” and that the current tone of communication with the United States was “pragmatic and results-oriented.”
Besides the Ukraine issue, other topics seemed to be discussed between the two sides.
According to Darcheev, Russia has prepared a document on restoring air traffic between Russia and the United States and has submitted it to the US for review, hoping to discuss it in detail in the next round of negotiations.
▲ On August 15, 2025 local time, Trump and Putin held a “three-on-three” closed-door meeting that lasted nearly three hours. Photo from Visual China
However, just after the end of the meeting, Russian officials kept tight-lipped about the specific achievements. Reports said that both the Russian president’s special representative,Dmitriev, and Finance Minister Siluanov did not disclose or answer questions about the outcomes of the meeting, adding a hint of mystery to this “positive” meeting.
Despite the positive atmosphere, the positions of both sides on core issues, as expressed in their pre- and post-meeting statements, showed certain differences.
Putin expressed his stance after the meeting. He said that in order to achieve a lasting solution, “we need to eliminate all the main causes of the conflict.” Some analysts pointed out that Putin’s statement covered a series of “unacceptable” conditions for Kyiv, such as Ukraine’s abandonment of joining NATO.
The “host priority” press conference:
Trump: Progress has been made, but no agreement has been reached
The post-meeting session was once again filled with “unusual” details.
Some reports noted that the press conference broke with convention, as Putin, the “guest,” took the lead in speaking and spoke for about eight minutes. Trump, known for his long speeches and occasional off-the-cuff remarks, spoke for only about four minutes. Moreover, after the two leaders made brief statements, “they left without answering hundreds of questions on site.”
▲ On August 15, 2025 local time, Putin and Trump held a joint press conference. Photo from Visual China
The two sides also expressed ambiguity about the results of the meeting. Putin said, “We hope to finally end the conflict with Ukraine,” while Trump said, “We have made some progress… but no agreement is final until it is actually reached.”
“I will call NATO later. I will call the people I think are appropriate. Of course, I will also call President Zelensky and tell him about the meeting today. It ultimately depends on them,” Trump said after the summit.
Some analysts believed that although no substantive agreement was reached, Putin presented Trump with a “public relations gift” at the meeting. Putin said, “Today President Trump said that if he were president at that time, there would be no war, and I am quite sure that it would be true. I can confirm this.”
John Bolton, Trump’s former national security advisor, commented in an interview, “Trump didn’t lose, but Putin clearly won. Russia avoided sanctions, there was no ceasefire… he achieved most of his goals. Putin made great progress in rebuilding relations with the US, which I always considered his key objective.” Some Ukrainian politicians believed that Putin “used Trump to show that he was not isolated.”
The summit concluded with Putin’s invitation and Trump’s possible response.
As the press conference was wrapping up, Putin issued a next invitation to Trump in English, “Next time in Moscow.”
Trump responded to this, “Oh, that’s interesting. I may get some criticism for this, but I think it’s possible.”
After the event, the two leaders departed separately. Following his meeting with US President Trump, Russian President Putin traveled to a Soviet pilot’s cemetery in Alaska to lay a wreath, while Trump returned to Washington, DC.