New Delhi: US President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin held a high stakes summit in Alaska on Friday. The two sides described the talks as “very productive” and “mutually respectful”. The talks were aimed at bringing to an end, the Ukraine war, which is one of the deadliest conflicts in Europe in the past 80 years.
‘No deal, until there is a deal’: Donald Trump
President Trump was quoted as saying, “there is no deal, until there is a deal”, a clear indication that there was no clear resolution during the meeting. Meanwhile Russian President Putin, described the talks as “thorough and useful”.
Putin also said that Russia was “sincerely interested in putting an end” to the conflict in Ukraine. He however said that there was a need to address “legitimate concerns”.
Both leaders addressed a joint press conference following 3-hours long talks. The talks focused upon Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. The war has killed thousands of people, but Russia is still not ready to give up its expansionist agenda. Reportedly the country made significant gains just before Putin met Trump in Alaska.
Trump told reporters at the media conference, “We had an extremely productive meeting, and many points were agreed to. There are just a very few that are left.” He added, “We didn’t get there, but we have a very good chance of getting there.”
Russian President Putin interacted a tad bit longer with the press than Trump. He said that the “negotiations took place in a constructive and mutually respectful atmosphere”. He described the meeting as “thorough and useful.” The Russian President said that he “hope that the understanding that they have reached would pave the way for peace in Ukraine.”
He added that he hoped that Ukraine and other European nations would perceive all this (talks) in a constructive manner and would not create any obstacles.
Russia has repeatedly called upon Ukraine to give up on its aim of joining the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) and cede its eastern regions to Russia, which they claim to have captured. Ukraine however has categorically rejected the offer and said that any peace deal should include security guarantees to prevent Russia from attacking again.
