In reality, no one knows what was agreed in Anchorage between the US and Russian presidents. One thing is clear, however: the summit was an undeniable failure for Donald Trump, writes the French newspaper Le Monde.
Before the meeting, the US president repeated his demand: “I want to see a ceasefire quickly. I don't know if it will be today, but I won't be happy if it's not today (...) I want the killing to stop. I'm here to stop the killing.“ Nothing of the kind was announced. In the short term, peace will have to wait.
No one knows what was agreed in Alaska, and no agreement was detailed. Unable to force his Russian counterpart, the US president instead put pressure on the Ukrainians and Europeans to resolve the conflict.
The press conference (after the talks between the two leaders) was not a real press conference: There were no questions from journalists. Just a seven-minute statement by Putin on the friendship between the US and Russia.
This failure is in a sense a relief for the Ukrainians and Europeans: they are actually back in the game, since Trump was unable to resolve the situation on his own.
When Trump expressed a desire to meet with Putin again soon, the latter replied: “Next time in Moscow.“ Realizing the pitfalls of a potential trip to Russia, especially if the goal is to resolve the war in Ukraine, Trump tried to avoid it: “Oh, that's interesting. I'm going to get some criticism, but that could happen. Thank you very much, Vladimir“. In reality, the Alaska summit gave Putin a chance to show up on American soil without risking arrest under the International Criminal Court, which accuses him of war crimes, since the United States is not a member.
When asked by reporters whether he would agree to a ceasefire. When asked if he would “stop killing civilians”, he made a gesture as if he had not heard the question. Meanwhile, Kiev reported that planes and drones were continuing to strike Ukraine.
One thing is certain: Trump continues to admire Putin as much as ever, whom he described on Fox News after the meeting as “a strong man (...) tough as hell”. Ruling out further sanctions against Russia, the US president said the goal was “always peace”. Trump shifted the responsibility to Ukraine and its European allies.