Trump and Putin Leave Alaska After No Deal Reached in Ukraine Talks

A highly anticipated summit between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday (Aug 15) yielded no agreement to resolve or pause Moscow's war in Ukraine, though both leaders described the talks as productive.

During a brief appearance before the media following the nearly three-hour meeting in Alaska, the two leaders said they had made progress on unspecified issues. But they offered no details and took no questions, with the normally loquacious Trump ignoring shouted questions from reporters.

"There were many, many points that we agreed on. I would say a couple of big ones that we haven't quite got there, but we've made some headway," Trump said, standing in front of a backdrop that read, "Pursuing Peace".

"There's no deal until there's a deal," he added.

The talks did not initially appear to have produced meaningful steps toward a ceasefire in the deadliest conflict in Europe in 80 years - or toward a subsequent meeting between Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, both goals Trump had set ahead of the summit.

Putin said he expected Ukraine and its European allies to accept the results of the US-Russia negotiation constructively and not try to "disrupt the emerging progress".

"I expect that today's agreements will become a reference point, not only for solving the Ukrainian problem, but will also launch the restoration of business-like, pragmatic relations between Russia and the United States," Putin said.

But Putin also repeated Moscow's long-held position that what Russia claims to be the "root causes" of the conflict must be eliminated to reach a long-term peace, a sign he remains resistant to a ceasefire.

Source - CNA