The meeting of the leaders of two superpowers, which caused a huge buzz in the world media, ended without the expected loud statements. At the summit in Anchorage between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump, no legal documents concerning the end of the war in Ukraine were signed.
This fact was confirmed by the Russian leader himself in an interview with Russian journalist Pavel Zarubin. Vladimir Putin admitted that the format of the negotiations did not imply the immediate formalization of agreements, however, the discussion of certain possibilities for resolving the conflict did take place.
"The Spirit of Anchorage" Remained at the Level of Talks
According to the head of the Kremlin, the American side voiced a number of proposals that could be considered compromise. The Russian delegation, in turn, allegedly agreed with part of these initiatives. However, as Putin noted, "no one put any signatures".
Thus, the so-called "spirit of Anchorage" did not receive formal consolidation. The negotiations remained in the plane of exchanging opinions and hypothetical scenarios that did not grow into a specific plan of action or a legal document.
Official Position of Washington
Rumors of secret agreements, which began to circulate immediately after the summit, were officially refuted by representatives of the US administration. Secretary of State Marco Rubio gave a categorical comment regarding the results of the meeting.
Rubio emphasized that only proposals were heard at the negotiations, but not agreements. He confirmed that the American side did indeed put forward initiatives to end the war, but none of them were accepted and did not turn into an agreed plan.
Moscow's Reaction to the Change of Course
The absence of signed documents and subsequent actions of the Trump administration caused serious dissatisfaction in the Russian leadership. The Kremlin noted a sharp turn in US policy towards supporting Ukraine.
Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Presidential Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov publicly demanded that Washington clearly define its position. The Russian side insists on an explanation of the reasons for the refusal of backroom agreements, especially against the backdrop of new joint statements by the White House and French President Emmanuel Macron.