Dutch lawmaker calls Trump-Putin Alaska summit a “clear win for Putin”

Dutch politicians and Ukrainian representatives in the Netherlands sharply criticized the U.S.-Russia summit in Alaska, where President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin met Friday but reached no agreement on peace or a ceasefire in Ukraine.

D66 Tweede Kamer member Jan Paternotte called the meeting “a clear win for Putin.” “He avoided sanctions and extended his war through a masterclass in flattery,” Paternotte said. “He stands before the world as a friend alongside Trump and can continue his aggression for now.”

Caretaker Prime Minister Dick Schoof wrote on X: “We welcome President Trump’s efforts to achieve a sustainable peace for Ukraine. It is good to see that there is now the prospect of a summit between the U.S., Ukraine and Russia, with European support. Negotiations can only take place with Ukraine.”

Oleksandr Tomashchuk, spokesperson for Ukrainians in the Netherlands, described the summit as a “diplomatic loss.” He emphasized that attacks in Ukraine continued during the talks. “You cannot convince Putin to act by being nice. He only understands the language of power,” Tomashchuk said. He criticized Trump for remaining unusually quiet after the talks and noted that the second part of the meeting did not take place.

Tomashchuk also looked ahead to Monday’s meeting between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. “Trump could propose something completely unacceptable and withdraw U.S. support if Zelensky refuses, turning it into a European problem. Or, and I hope this happens, Trump recognizes that Putin does not want peace. In that case, stricter sanctions and increased military support are the only ways to end this war.” He added that tougher sanctions would prevent Russia from rebuilding its military capacity and that greater military aid would strengthen Ukraine, including enabling the use of long-range missiles deep into Russian territory.

Humanitarian concerns were highlighted by Stichting Vluchteling, a Dutch refugee organization. The group said the lack of an agreement was “not surprising” and noted that violence in Ukraine has escalated, with civilians increasingly affected. “Negotiation cannot take place without Ukraine’s involvement,” the organization said, adding that nearly 13 million Ukrainians are in urgent need, with 5.6 million displaced and widespread shortages of medical care, shelter, and safe drinking water.

The summit in Anchorage, Alaska, lasted more than two and a half hours and included top diplomats and foreign ministers from both countries. Trump described the talks as exploratory. “I am not going to make a deal,” he said earlier this week. He added Friday that he “would not be happy if the summit did not result in a ceasefire in Ukraine.”

Putin invited Trump for a future meeting in Moscow and claimed that the 2022 war would not have occurred if Trump had been president at the time — a statement Trump has made previously. Both leaders described the discussions as constructive and said progress was made, though no concrete agreements were reached.