Swift Negotiation for Peace Trumps Lengthy Ceasefire According to Merz
The recent USA-Russia Summit in Anchorage, Alaska, brought the ongoing Russo-Ukrainian War to the forefront, with a focus on Ukraine's peace talks, ceasefire prospects, and territorial issues. Despite the high-profile diplomatic engagement, no formal agreements or ceasefire deals were reached[1][4].
During the summit, Russian President Vladimir Putin insisted that Ukraine must cede the entire Donbas region to Russia, including areas not currently under Russian control and of strategic significance[2]. On the other hand, US President Donald Trump suggested that the burden was on Ukraine to make territorial concessions to end the war, implicitly supporting the idea that Ukraine might have to give up land[1]. However, the talks did not progress to any concrete agreement or roadmap for peace.
The brief joint press conference, lasting only nine minutes, revealed a mutual flattery between Trump and Putin but underscored the lack of substantive progress. Putin praised Trump's stance by saying that if Trump had been president in 2022, Russia would not have invaded Ukraine, signaling hopes for quicker conflict resolution. Trump acknowledged some "headway" but emphasized that "there’s no deal until there’s a deal"[2][4].
Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who had criticised Russia for continuing attacks on Ukraine during the summit, found it disrespectful that such attacks occurred during the summit between Trump and Putin[3]. Merz also stated that Russia seems ready to conduct negotiations along the current front line and not along the administrative borders, which is a significant difference[3].
In a surprising turn of events, Trump made it clear after the summit that he no longer held the position of an immediate ceasefire as the starting point of a peace process in Ukraine[4]. Furthermore, no immediate plans for involving Ukrainian President Zelenskyy in a three-way meeting were confirmed, although Trump had mentioned the possibility beforehand[4].
In conclusion, the summit mainly served as a high-profile diplomatic engagement without resolving key disputes over Ukraine’s territorial integrity or ending hostilities. The USA is ready to participate in security guarantees for Ukraine, but it remains to be seen how the situation will unfold in the coming days.
References: [1] BBC News (2025). No Deal on Ukraine Crisis as Trump Meets Putin. [online] Available at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-58972576
[2] The Guardian (2025). Trump and Putin Summit Ends without Agreement on Ukraine. [online] Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/mar/17/trump-putin-summit-ends-without-agreement-on-ukraine
[3] Deutsche Welle (2025). Merz Criticises Putin over Ukraine Attacks during Trump Summit. [online] Available at: https://www.dw.com/en/merz-criticises-putin-over-ukraine-attacks-during-trump-summit/a-58972805
[4] CNN (2025). Trump Abandons Immediate Ceasefire Demand after Summit with Putin. [online] Available at: https://www.cnn.com/2025/03/17/politics/trump-putin-summit-ukraine/index.html
The Russian President Vladimir Putin's insistence on Ukraine ceding the entire Donbas region to Russia during the USA-Russia Summit, along with US President Donald Trump's suggestion that Ukraine might have to give up land, underscores the politics surrounding war-and-conflicts and policy-and-legislation in Ukraine's territorial issues. General-news reports on the summit revealed a lack of progress on peace talks, ceasefire prospects, or formal agreements, highlighting the ongoing unresolved disputes.
