On the local time of August 15th, Russian President Putin and U.S. President Trump held a meeting at the Elmen多夫-Richardson Joint Military Base in Anchorage, Alaska. The two heads of state climbed onto a platform marked “Alaska 2025” and took photos together, followed by a ride in the U.S. presidential limousine nicknamed “The Beast” to the venue.
On August 15th, local time, U.S. President Trump and Russian President Putin met at the airport of the Elmen多夫-Richardson Joint Military Base in Anchorage, Alaska. Image source: Visual China
As for why the heads of state from Russia and the United States took the U.S. presidential limousine to the venue together, RIA Novosti quoted sources as saying that this decision was not planned in advance but was an impromptu one. According to the original plan, the heads of state from Russia and the United States were to travel to the venue in Russian-made “Aurus” and American-made Cadillac limousines respectively, but the on-site ceremony repeatedly broke with the established arrangements.
Sources revealed that according to the plan, Putin and Trump should have walked up to take photos from separate sides, but in reality, they both walked up together on the red carpet and took photos. To the surprise of their entourage, when Trump suddenly invited Putin to ride in the “Beast” limousine, Putin agreed readily.
Furthermore, when Trump and Putin walked on the red carpet, two American F-22 stealth fighters were parked on each side. The US military aircraft formed a formation and flew overhead. Both men looked up at the sky. A Pentagon official confirmed to ABC that the formation consisted of a B-2 stealth strategic bomber and four F-35 stealth fighters.
After the正式开始 of the meeting between the heads of state from Russia and the United States, Trump and Putin did not make speeches or answer media questions during the opening ceremony. CNN said that when Trump meets with foreign leaders, he usually speaks a lot at the beginning, but he didn’t this time.
Trump and Putin held a meeting in Anchorage, Alaska on August 15th. Both sides stated that the meeting was “constructive” and “productive”, but no agreement was reached on issues such as the ceasefire in Ukraine. In the view of US media, Trump declared that the meeting was a success and that he reached a consensus with Putin on most issues, but Putin still held his strongest position, so it was unlikely to achieve a major breakthrough.