Trump–Putin Alaska summit ends without peace deal — here's what they said at the 'no-questions' press conference

US President Donald Trump's and Russian President Vladimir Putin's much-anticipated meeting in Anchorage, Alaska, ended on Friday (Aug 15) with no apparent breakthrough on Ukraine. The two leaders seemed to be rekindling their friendship, but after three hour-long talks, as they faced the press, they didn't take any questions, instead choosing to only issue statements in the 12-minute-long press conference. Here's all they said in the press conference that concluded the vital Alaska summit.

Key takeaways from the Trump-Putin Alaska press briefing.

“Constructive”, “productive” talks, but no peace deal

Even though Trump and Putin ended their Alaska summit on Friday without a ceasefire deal for Ukraine, both leaders described their talks as "constructive" and "productive." Appearing before reporters for what the White House billed as a joint press conference, they took no questions, ignoring repeated shouts from journalists.

Putin said that the "negotiations have been held in a constructive atmosphere of mutual respect". The statement was echoed by Trump, who said, "I believe we had a very productive meeting."

What did Putin say about Ukraine?

Russian President Putin avoided direct discussion or questions on Ukraine's battlefield situation. He said that he hoped that the Alaska meeting would be "the starting point," for the "solution of the Ukrainian issue, but also will help us bring back business-like and pragmatic relations between Russia and the US."

Putin said Moscow expected "that Kyiv and the European capitals will perceive all this in a constructive manner and will not create any obstacles". He also warned against "attempts to disrupt the emerging progress through provocation or behind-the-scenes intrigues."

What did Trump say about Ukraine?

Trump claimed that he and Putin have "made some headway" on the Ukraine issue but insisted that "there's no deal until there's a deal".

He said that Putin wants peace. "We're going to stop, really, 5, 6, 7 thousand, 1000s of people a week from being killed, and President Putin wants to see that as much as I do."

The US President, however, left the peace deal negotiations up to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, saying that he will brief him and NATO about "today's meeting".

"It's ultimately up to them. They're going to have to agree with what Marco and Steve and some of the great people from the Trump administration".

"So just to put it very quickly, I'm going to start making a few phone calls and tell them what happened. But we had an extremely productive meeting, and many points were agreed to."

Putin attempts to flatter Trump, touts US-Russia shared history

In his statement, Putin sought to emphasise the shared history between the US and Russia, including Alaska's Russian heritage and cooperation during World War II. He said the two nations should "turn the page" and return to cooperation, adding that he hoped agreements reached in Alaska would help pave the way to peace in Ukraine.

"It is symbolic that, not far away from here, the border between Russia and the US, there was a so-called International Date Line. I think you can step over, literally, from yesterday into tomorrow, and I hope that's- will succeed in that, in the political sphere."

Did Trump-Putin make any deals?

While no deal was reached on a ceasefire in Ukraine, Trump said "many, many points" were agreed on, with only a few major sticking points remaining.

"There were many, many points that we agreed on, most of them, I would say, a couple of big ones that we haven't quite gotten there, but we've made some headway," said Trump, adding, "There's no deal until there's a deal."

"I will call up NATO in a little while, I will call up the various people that I think are appropriate, and I'll of course, call up President Zelenskyy and tell him about today's meeting."

Putin, Trump to meet again?

The summit marked the first US–Russia leaders' meeting in four years. It happened as the Ukraine war entered its third year and as relations between the US and Russia reached their lowest point since the Cold War.

After the talks, both men signalled willingness to meet again, with Putin inviting Trump to Moscow. "Next time in Moscow," Putin told Trump in English after the US president thanked him and said he would "probably see you again very soon."

"Oh, that's an interesting one," Trump responded. "I'll get a little heat on that one, but I could see it possibly happening."