US President Donald Trump reserved a rare display of VIP treatment for his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on Friday while welcoming him for their historic summit in Alaska. The MAGA leader not only had a red carpet rolled out, but also gave him a ride in the presidential state limousine, The Beast.
Although the root cause of their high-stakes meeting in Anchorage was all solemn, given that actual lives and survival literally hung in the balance, the two presidents were all-smiles for the cameras, posing as best buddies reuniting after a long while. The public inevitably gave its verdict, as the nearly three-hour interactions between the leaders resulted in no positive conclusion, again leaving Ukrainians devoid of a beacon of hope. Some slammed the meeting as a “photo-op” altogether.
Ukrainians ‘crushed’ by Putin’s red carpet treatment
With Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy not invited to this first crucial meeting, Putin already had an advantage as he sought to woo the US president, presumably hoping to bring him to his side. Officials from the war-ridden country were shocked by the VIP spectacle awaiting the Russian president, who continued to attack Ukraine even in the face of potential ceasefire/peace deal negotiations.
BBC shed light on how those in Kyiv waiting for a piece of good news were left feeling “crushed” by Trump’s over-the-top reception of Putin. “I understand that for negotiations you shake hands, you can’t just slap Putin in the face when he arrives. But this spectacle with the red carpet and the kneeling soldiers, it’s terrible, it makes no sense,” said Serhii Orlyk, a 50-year-old veteran from the eastern Donetsk region.
“How can you welcome a tyrant like that?” Natalya Lypei, 66, a Kyiv resident, said of Putin, who is also the subject of an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court.
Trump intended to gift a desk statue to Putin, aborted lavish luncheon plans leaked
If that showcase wasn’t enough to betray Ukrainians, a new leak has since revealed that Trump even had a lavish luncheon planned for the alleged war criminal. A gift also seems to have been involved in the picture. According to NPR’s recent report gone viral, an eight-page printout with non-public information (devoid of any sensitive security details) is said to have been left behind in a hotel printer in Anchorage hours before the Alaska summit.
The once publicly funded news outlet divulged that three guest at Hotel Captain Cook stumbled upon the papers in a publicly available printer. Although most details of the high-profile meeting were already public information, these documents turned to spotlight to a lunch that was ultimately cancelled and the aborted menu details.
Trump had reportedly planned to treat Putin to filet mignon with brandy peppercorn sauce and halibut olympia served with buttery whipped potatoes and roasted asparagus, a green salad with champagne vinaigrette and creme brulle.
Another page also disclosed a seating chart which indicated that Trump and Putin would have sat across each other around a board-room style table, with US State Secretary Marco Rubio, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth and others of the like in attendance.
Some other pages additionally showed participants’ names for a then-anticipated meeting between officials of both countries. Aides are believed to have been instructed on Putin’s pronunciation as “POO-tihn” as well.
The report further dug in, alleging that Trump intended to gift Putin an American bald eagle desk statue. However, these reportedly pre-planned developments were ultimately rebuffed as the two presidents failed to reach an affirmative conclusion to end Russia’s war in Ukraine.