In a historic and controversial moment that has sent shockwaves around the globe, US President Donald Trump welcomed Russian President Vladimir Putin to Alaska with a spectacle that defies diplomatic norms. For the first time in history, US troops were seen kneeling to roll out the red carpet for the Russian leader, a gesture that has ignited outrage, particularly in Ukraine, where the war continues to rage.

The summit marked the first in-person meeting between Trump and Putin since 2018 and was Putin’s first visit to Western soil since his invasion of Ukraine in 2022. As Trump clapped enthusiastically and greeted Putin with a warm handshake at the tarmac of an Alaskan air base, the optics of the event overshadowed any substantive discussions about the ongoing conflict.

Images of American soldiers kneeling to straighten the red carpet for Putin quickly went viral, drawing fierce criticism. Mustafa Na, former head of Ukraine’s State Agency for Restoration and Infrastructure Development, mocked the scene on social media, stating, “Make kneeling great again.” The stark contrast between Trump’s affability toward Putin and his treatment of other world leaders has raised eyebrows and sparked a firestorm of debate about US foreign policy.

Despite Trump’s claims of an “extremely productive meeting,” no breakthroughs were announced regarding the war in Ukraine. Instead, the summit seemed more focused on optics than on tangible outcomes. Trump emphasized that it was now up to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to take the lead in securing peace, a statement that many see as shifting responsibility away from the US.

As the world watches, the lasting image of this summit may well be the red carpet moment—an emblem of the complex and often contentious relationship between the US and Russia, leaving Ukraine’s fate hanging in the balance. With the war still ongoing, the summit’s failure to yield concrete results raises urgent questions about the future of diplomacy in a fractured geopolitical landscape.