President Trump may not fully accept Russia’s stated goals for its Special Military Operation, but he apparently understands them better than he did before the summit. From Strategic Culture at strategic-culture.su:
The U.S. is the main protagonist in this proxy war, and, therefore, it is the United States that must end it.
The summit in Alaska between the American and Russian presidents was a massive, crucial win for diplomacy. To his credit, U.S. President Donald Trump welcomed Vladimir Putin with warmth and respect – much to the chagrin of the Western (American and European) warmongers and their Ukrainian proxy regime.
Putin reciprocated with friendship and graciousness. The smiles and handshakes were signs of genuine commitment to amity and working together through diplomacy to resolve a multi-faceted conflict in Ukraine that could perilously escalate into nuclear catastrophe.
The two leaders stepped off their presidential planes at Elmendorf-Richardson Joint Airbase in Anchorage and greeted each other with pleasantries. For the nuclear superpowers to be seen engaging like that in a personal rapport was powerful symbolism.
Trump and Putin then held three-hour discussions accompanied by other senior aides. Both men emerged declaring that they had held excellent, productive talks on ending the war in Ukraine. Putin proposed a follow-up meeting in Moscow, which Trump appeared to appreciate.
The joint press conference indicated that the two leaders had reached an important understanding about the conflict and that it must be ended with a sustainable peace agreement. For his part, Trump appeared to be in listening mode. He later announced that a full settlement must be achieved as a priority. He eschewed earlier talk about a temporary ceasefire and the threat of imposing economic sanctions on Russia if it did not agree to a truce. Significantly, Trump’s new position of moving directly to a comprehensive peace deal contradicts the position of the Kiev regime and European allies. Their testy and churlish reactions after the summit – demanding more sanctions on Russia – suggest that the Trump administration has decided to end the war with or without them.
