Trump says no deal reached at summit but Putin ‘respects our country now’: Latest

The Kyiv Independent published a blistering editorial after the Alaska summit, condemning the warm reception Vladimir Putin received from Donald Trump.

The editorial described Putin as a “blood-soaked dictator and war criminal” who was given a royal welcome in the US, even as Russian attack drones struck Ukrainian cities.

It contrasted Trump’s red-carpet treatment of the Russian president with his earlier “public shaming” of Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky, calling both episodes “disgraceful.”

The paper accused Trump of indulging Putin rather than confronting him, warning that the Russian leader “doesn’t really make deals – he takes… until stopped by force.”

Foreign minister Sergey Lavrov’s choice of a USSR sweatshirt and Kremlin journalists joking about “chicken Kyiv” served on the flight to Alaska were cited as signs Moscow never took the peace talks seriously.

The editorial warned that Putin left the summit emboldened, not just over Ukraine but in his wider goal of unsettling the transatlantic alliance.

It said unless Ukraine is brought to the table, the US risks handing Putin another win in the next round of talks, while the red-carpet images of a “murderer” will linger far longer than any words spoken in Alaska.

Russia’s air defence systems intercepted and destroyed 29 Ukrainian drones overnight over various Russian regions, including 10 downed over the Rostov region, RIA agency reported on Saturday, citing Russian defence ministry.

Donald Trump was seen clapping as he waited for Vladimir Putin to walk towards him on the red carpet after he got down from Air Force One.

The Russian president is then seen walking towards him and the two shook their hands.

The US president has been called out on social media for his warm greeting of an alleged war criminal.

“Clapping for the war criminal. What a disgrace to our country’s ideals. Trump always shows his true colors around Putin. And he always sells out America and our allies. I remember when Republican presidents—Ike, Reagan, Bush—always stood up to tyrants. This is pathetic,” Terry Moran, a user said on X.

Democratic rep Jim McGovern said: “Trump rolls out the red carpet for a war criminal. On American soil. The US government should be arresting Putin, not hosting him. Shameful and embarrassing.”

Democratic sen Richard Blumenthal said his stomach turned when he heard the president of the United States characterize Putin as his fabulously good friend.

“Vladimir Putin is a war criminal. … The reality on the ground is that people are bleeding and dying all around Ukraine because Putin is continuing to bomb them,” he told CNN.

Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin ended nearly three hours of high-stakes talks in Alaska without any sign of a Ukraine ceasefire deal – raising questions over the trajectory of the war and the fate of European security.

“We didn’t get there,” a downbeat US president said as he told reporters that the two leaders had not reached an agreement but the meeting had been “very productive”.

“We’ve made some headway,” he added.

World Affairs Editor Sam Kiley and White House Correspondent Andrew Feinberg in Anchorage, Alaska, filed this report.

European leaders reacted with scepticism after Vladimir Putin’s latest remarks at the Alaska summit, with Lithuania accusing him of issuing veiled threats and the Czech Republic questioning his commitment to peace despite ongoing attacks on Ukraine.

Lithuanian defence minister Dovile Sakaliene accused Vladimir Putin of “more gaslighting and veiled threats” after the Russian leader warned Ukraine and Europe not to “sabotage” summit progress.

“War criminal with an addiction of radioactive poisoning of his critics addresses the US President with ‘Very good to see you in good health and to see you alive’,” she wrote.

Czech foreign minister Jan Lipavsky, meanwhile, welcomed Donald Trump’s efforts but questioned Putin’s intentions.

“If Putin were serious about negotiating peace, he would not have been attacking Ukraine all day today,” he said, according to Reuters.

“It seems Putin has bought himself more time,” Oleksiy Honcharenko, a Ukrainian lawmaker wrote on social media. “No cease-fire or any kind of de-escalation has been agreed upon.”

The highly anticipated talks between President Donald Trump and Russian leader Vladimir Putin ended with no firm agreement on stopping the three-year war in Ukraine, as both leaders took notably different stances speaking after the high-stakes summit in Alaska.

At what was billed as a press conference following a nearly three-hour meeting between the two leaders and their top aides Friday, Putin attempted to set the terms when he spoke first after both emerged on the stage at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson outside Anchorage.

By contrast, Trump followed in brief comments and said firmly: “There’s no deal until there’s a deal.”

Andrew Feinberg filed this report from Anchorage, Alaska, in conjunction with Rhian Lubin in New York.

British troops could be on the ground in Ukraine within days of a ceasefire, the British Ministry of Defence has said.

The announcement comes as Russian president Vladimir Putin met his US counterpart Donald Trump in Anchorage, Alaska, to discuss the conflict that has raged for more than three years in eastern Europe.

The two leaders spoke for nearly three hours but failed to strike a deal, offering only brief statements afterwards. Trump described “some great progress” with “many points” agreed, though admitted “very few” issues remained unresolved.

London has already thrown its support behind an international plan to create a “Multinational Force Ukraine” – a military mission designed to bolster Kyiv’s defences and deter further Russian aggression once the fighting subsides.

“Planning has continued on an enduring basis to ensure that a force can deploy in the days following the cessation of hostilities,” an MoD spokesperson said.

According to the government, the force will help secure Ukraine’s skies, safeguard its seas, and rebuild its land forces by providing logistics, armaments, and training expertise.

“It will strengthen Ukraine’s path to peace and stability by supporting the regeneration of Ukraine’s own forces,” the spokesperson added.

The early blueprints for the mission were drawn up last month at a meeting of military chiefs in Paris, where the EU, Nato, the US and more than 200 planners agreed on a strategy and coordination plan.