Publisher’s note: This is a story in development and is updated.
European officials expressed disappointment and disgust on August 16 after the end of the eagerly awaited meeting between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, who are constantly in Ukraine.
The two leaders spoke for almost three hours in Anchorage, Alaska, on August 15, but did not announce major measures to end the Russia’s large -scale war.
Like Ukraine, Europe was prevented from participating in the Alaska summit, which saw Trump deploy a red carpet to greet Putin and ended at a joint press conference where the two leaders agreed that the main blame for the 2022 invasion rests with former American president Joe Biden.
Managers of various European countries went to social networks to share their reactions after the summit.
“Putin received her treatment from the red carpet with Trump, Trump got nothing,” wrote German diplomat Wolfgang Ischinger on X.
“As it was to be feared: no ceasefire, no peace. No real progress – clearly 1: 0 for Putin – no new sanctions. For Ukrainians: nothing. For Europe: deeply disappointing.”
During the post-Summit press conference, Putin issued a cryptic warning for kyiv and its European allies so as not to “disrupt emerging progress” of peace talks. He also said that Russia’s requests included “a fair balance in the field of security in Europe”.
Dovile Sakaline, Minister of Defense of Lithuania, said that Putin’s comments were “threats of gas and veiled threats”.
Sakaline also noted that throughout the day of the summit, Russia continued to “bomb civilians in Ukraine”.
The Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky said he had welcomed Trump’s peace restoration, but warned of the purchase in Kremlin propaganda.
“The problem is Russian imperialism, not the desire of Ukraine to live freely. … If Putin was serious about peace talks, he would not have attacked Ukraine all day today,” wrote Lipavsky on X.
Editorial: This meeting was disgusting. Putin loved
Disgusting. Ashamed. And in the end, useless. These are the words that came to my mind when we looked at the top of Alaska unfold. On our screens, a dictator and a war criminal soaked in blood received a royal reception in the land of free – while his attack drones were heading for our cities. In the conduct of the meeting in Alaska, Trump said that he wanted a “ceasefire today” and that Putin would face “serious consequences” if he did not. However, after a 2.5 -hour closed -fired meeting, Trump and Putin E
