Trump and Putin leave Alaska with no Ukraine deal

US President Donald Trump has left Alaska without a deal to end the war in Ukraine, following a high-stakes meeting with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.

“There’s no deal until there’s a deal,” Trump told the world’s media following the meeting, adding that “great progress” was made but “we didn’t get there”.

On his flight back to Washington he held a call with Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky, who later said he would travel to Washington on Monday. European leaders were also on the call.

Despite the fanfare around the summit – and Trump’s confidence in being able to achieve a ceasefire – no tangible progress was made towards a resolution to the war in Ukraine.

Every stage of the leaders’ arrival at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage was carefully choreographed.

Putin, who is facing an International Criminal Court arrest warrant for alleged war crimes in Ukraine, stepped off his jet and onto a red carpet to be warmly greeted by Trump.

Over the roar of a B2 bomber overhead, the two leaders posed for photos before climbing in Trump’s presidential vehicle, known as The Beast.

But despite the pageantry and public shows of geniality – as well as the Kremlin’s earlier estimate that the meeting could last six or seven hours – Trump and Putin emerged less than three hours later with just a joint statement to the press.

Putin said that, in order to make a “settlement lasting and long-term, we need to eliminate the root causes of the conflict” in Ukraine.

The phrase indicated that Putin has not budged from his longstanding position that Ukraine should withdraw from four regions partially occupied by Russia – Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia – and give up its efforts to join the Nato military alliance.

Zelensky has ruled out retreating from the four embattled region, warning that would leave the door open for an emboldened Russia to mount another offensive in the future. Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine more than three years ago, after annexing the Crimean peninsula in 2014.

Putin also urged Ukrainians and Europeans to “not throw a wrench” into the peace process. Trump remained silent as his guest spent about eight minutes addressing the media.

After being given the floor, the US president said he had a “fantastic relationship with President Putin. Vladimir,” switching to the Russian leader’s first name.

Even though “many points were agreed to”, he said, “a few” remain, adding that “one is the most significant” – without specifying what that key sticking point was. Neither took questions.

The two also did not attend the planned bilateral “working lunch” that was set to follow the talks.

An interview on Fox News after the meeting offered few additional details.

The meeting went “very well”, Trump told host Sean Hannity, adding “maybe we’ll have a good result”.

Heading into the Alaska meeting, Trump had threatened “very severe consequences” if his Russian counterpart did not agree to end the war. In July, he said he’d impose 100% secondary tariffs targeting Russia’s remaining trade partners if a peace deal with Ukraine was not reached within 50 days.

But questioned on Fox News over where the meeting left those threats, Trump said: “We don’t have to think about it today.”

“Maybe in two weeks, three weeks,” he said, “but the meeting went very well.”

Asked about a possible trilateral summit including Zelensky, Trump said: “They both want me there and I’ll be there,” without giving a date or location for meeting.

Conspicuously absent from the Alaska meeting was the Ukrainian leader who, like Putin, has elicited a range of reactions from Trump since he returned to the Oval Office.

The two had a lengthy call on the flight back to Washington DC, before other Nato leaders including UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer joined the conversation.

Zelensky said he would travel to Washington on Monday to meet Trump, and that he supported Trump’s proposal for a trilateral meeting.

He noted “positive signals from the American side regarding participation in guaranteeing Ukraine’s security” – something European allies have called for as part of a combined effort to prevent another conflict.

Those in Ukraine may breathe a sigh of relief that no deal that would cede territory to Russia had been reached.

But they may also be alarmed that Putin continued to use rhetoric that seeks to justify the original objective of the invasion – to dismantle Ukraine as an independent state.