Vladimir Putin: 'We Reached Understandings with Trump to End the War in Ukraine'

Russian President Vladimir Putin has stated that he reached “understandings” with U.S. President Donald Trump regarding an end to the war in Ukraine during their meeting in Alaska last month. Speaking at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in Tianjin, China, Putin emphasized that the agreements reached could pave the way for peace, though he did not clarify whether he would engage in peace talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky mediated by Trump. He noted that Chinese leader Xi Jinping had been briefed on the results and promised to inform other SCO members.

Following the Alaska summit on August 15, U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff indicated that Putin had agreed in principle to security guarantees for Ukraine as part of a potential peace deal, but Moscow has yet to officially confirm these assurances. In his remarks at the SCO, Putin continued to justify Russia’s invasion, asserting that the crisis was not triggered by Moscow’s attack but by a coup in Ukraine allegedly supported by the West. He also blamed the conflict on Western attempts to bring Ukraine into NATO, which he claims threatened Russian security.

The announcement comes just days after Russia launched its second-largest air assault on Ukraine since the war began, killing at least 23 people and targeting Kyiv with hundreds of drones and missiles. French President Emmanuel Macron recently noted that Putin faced a Monday, September 2, deadline set by Trump to agree to peace talks with Zelensky, warning that failure to respond would demonstrate that “President Putin has manipulated President Trump.”

Trump has maintained that a swift resolution of the conflict is possible, suggesting a permanent peace deal that would include security guarantees for Ukraine without committing U.S. troops. Zelensky, meanwhile, has rejected proposals for a buffer zone with Russia, arguing that Moscow is not genuinely prepared for diplomacy and seeks to prolong the war. Despite ongoing Western pressure and continued Russian attacks, discussions around potential security frameworks for Ukraine remain underway, with the U.S. and Europe considering measures akin to NATO’s Article 5 to provide protective guarantees.

Putin thanked China and India for their support, noting their role in facilitating discussions on the Ukrainian crisis. Both countries remain major purchasers of Russian oil, drawing criticism from the West for sustaining Moscow’s economy amid the ongoing conflict. Despite these developments, Putin reiterated his longstanding opposition to Ukrainian NATO membership and insisted that the West bears responsibility for escalating tensions.

The Alaska summit represents the latest in a series of meetings where Trump has sought to mediate the war, having previously suggested he could resolve it in a single day. He has met both Zelensky and European leaders in Washington, emphasizing that Europe would serve as the “first line of defence” while providing security assurances without direct U.S. military deployment. Witkoff confirmed that these guarantees could include “Article 5-like” commitments to protect Ukraine, though the specifics are still being finalized.