President Donald Trump made an unusual gesture by inviting Russian President Vladimir Putin to ride along with him in the Beast, the presidential limo.
Despite Putin invading Ukraine in February 2022 and continuing to kill Ukrainian civilians, Trump gave the Russian leader a traditional diplomatic welcome.
The two men walked on red carpets to meet one another on the tarmac of Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, located just outside of Anchorage, Alaska.
Trump clapped several times upon seeing Putin, who he met with several times during his first term.
They shook hands and ignored reporters’ questions, while the press pushed Putin on the war in Ukraine and the deaths of Ukrainian civilians.
And then Trump guided Putin into the Beast with him, allowing the two leaders to have a private meeting in the under 10 minutes it took to reach the meeting locale on the base.
No aides nor translators were with the two leaders.
Footage appeared to show Putin smiling as he rode along with Trump during their only alone time at the start of the summit.
Ahead of Trump’s arrival in Alaska, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt clarified that Trump and Putin would no longer be meeting one-on-one.
Instead, Trump would be joined by Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, who has taken several trips to Moscow to try and negotiate a Ukraine ceasefire and greater peace, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Putin brought along Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and foreign affairs adviser Yuri Ushakov to the official negotiation.
Trump’s show of respect to the Russian leader was in direct contrast to the welcome he gave Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in the Oval Office in late February.
Their on-air spat, which included Vice President J.D. Vance, sent shockwaves around the world and rattled European leaders, who have been in lockstep with Zelensky and have contributed to the defense of Ukraine.
‘You don’t have the cards,’ Trump yelled at Zelensky, telling the Ukrainian president was gambling with ‘World War III’ and that he was being ‘disrespectful’ to the American people.
The Oval Office showdown was remarkable because Trump has generally used flattery – even on the most odious world leaders.
During his first face-to-face meeting with Kim Jong Un in Singapore in June 2018, Trump fawned over the North Korean dictator, telling reporters afterward that he floated that instead of testing nuclear weapons, Kim could take advantage of the country’s ‘great beaches.’
‘I explained, I said, “You know, instead of doing that, you could have the best hotels in the world right there,”‘ Trump said he told Kim.
During that same meeting with Kim, Trump showed him the Beast – but didn’t allow the North Korean leader to take a ride.
Zelensky and Trump have since improved their relationship, while the president has taken a harder tone against Putin amid Russia’s continued assault against Ukraine, with missiles and drones targeting Ukrainian civilians.
Trump has credited first lady Melania Trump for his change of tone – saying that she’s pointed out the brutality of the Ukraine war, while the president has been trying to negotiate an end of it on calls with Putin.