US President Donald Trump, Russia’s Vladimir Putin, and top aides concluded their historic face-to-face talks and prepared a news conference to brief the world on their discussions, as Ukraine nervously watched, wary of results that could endanger its security or sovereignty.
The meeting, which began on August 15 around 11:30 a.m. at Joint Base Elmendorf in near Anchorage, concluded some 2 hours and 45 minutes later at around 2:15 p.m.
Reporters gathered at the press room immediately after the announcement that the talks had concluded awaiting an expected news conference by Trump and Putin.
Earlier, Trump arrived at Joint Base Elmendorf aboard Air Force One around 10:20 a.m. local time, while a Russian Ilyushin jet with Putin aboard landed about 40 minutes later.
Trump and Putin shook hands and walked side-by-side on the tarmac adorned with a red carpet, as reporters shouted questions at the two leaders, including whether the Russian leader would stop attacks on civilians or agree to a cease-fire. It was not clear if the two could hear the questions.
US F-22 fighter jets and a B-2 bomber soared overhead as the two walked along the tarmac.
In a surprising move, Putin then joined Trump in the ultra-secure US presidential limousine — known as “The Beast” — casually chatting as they headed toward the meeting site, a rare honor for a leader of an adversarial nation.
The two leaders then sat together with their respective delegations at the meeting site in front of a blue backdrop with the words “Pursuing Peace” printed on it.
“Thank you very much. Thank you,” Trump said, as reporters again shouted questions that the two presidents declined to answer before their meeting.
The White House announced shortly after Trump and his entourage arrived that the president would not meet one-on-one with Putin. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and special envoy Steve Witkoff were to join him.
Putin also had two aides — Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and adviser Yury Ushakov — with him for the talks, the Russian side said.
AP reported that General Alexus Grynkewich, NATO’s supreme allied commander Europe, was in Alaska to provide “military advice” to Trump. US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth was there as well, according to a senior NATO official.
Though Trump and Putin have spoken by phone at least five times since January, the August 15 meeting was their first face-to-face of Trump’s second term.
“I think it’s going to work out very well, and if it doesn’t I’m gonna head back home really fast,” Trump said in an interview with Fox News on Air Force One.
“I won’t be happy if I walk away without some form of a cease-fire,” he added. “This is really setting the table today. We are going to have another meeting if things work out, which will be very soon, or we’re not going to have any meetings at all. Maybe ever.”
Trump has suggested that any resolution to the war could include “swapping of territories.” That would potentially conflict with Kyiv’s longstanding position that it must regain all the territory Russia currently occupies.
Ukraine Excluded From Talks
With Ukrainian officials left out, the talks are shaping up as a pivotal moment: for Ukrainians exhausted by war, for Trump’s peace-making aspirations, and for Putin’s efforts to recast Russia’s standing on the world stage.
“We are counting on America. We are ready, as always, to work as productively as possible,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy wrote on Telegram after Trump left Washington.
European leaders, who have also been left on the sidelines, were nervous about potential deals that would leave Ukraine in a weaker position or undermine Europe’s ability to support Ukraine and stand up to Russia’s threats.
For Russians, the symbolism of Putin meeting on US soil, moreover on territory that used to be controlled by Russia, was itself a small victory. Putin’s ability to travel abroad has been limited by a war crimes arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court, and the West has made Putin a pariah for his unprovoked war on Kyiv.
Trump maintained that a direct meeting with Putin could halt the war — a conflict that has killed or injured over a million Russian troops — by drawing on both the historically warm rapport the two men have shared and his own long self-cultivated reputation for dealmaking.
