The August 15, 2025, summit in Anchorage, Alaska, between Presidents Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin has emerged in American media analysis as a case study in political theater. Designed to produce a major diplomatic breakthrough, it primarily generated symbolic and narrative outcomes while failing to achieve its main stated objective: ending the war in Ukraine. US press coverage, across the ideological spectrum, has largely defined this summit not by what was agreed upon, but by what was missing. The narrative crystallized around the stark contrast between a grandiose, high-stakes staging and the glaring absence of a concrete agreement.
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