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Vladimir Putin
delivered 18 August 2025, Joint Base Elmendorf–Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska
Mr. President, ladies and gentlemen, We held our talks in a constructive and mutually respectful atmosphere, and they have proved substantive and productive. I would like to once again thank my U.S. counterpart for the proposal to come to Alaska. It is quite logical to meet here since our countries, albeit separated by oceans, are, in fact, close neighbors. When we stepped out of our planes and greeted each other, I said, “Good afternoon, dear neighbor. I am glad to see you alive and in good health.” I believe it sounds very friendly and neighborly.
Our countries are separated only by the Bering Strait -- essentially, there are two islands, one Russian and one American, separated by a mere four kilometers. We are close neighbors, that’s a fact. It is also important to note that our shared history and many positive events are largely related to Alaska. There is still an enormous cultural legacy preserved since the age of Russian America, with Russian Orthodox churches and more than 700 place-names of Russian origin. During World War II, Alaska served as the starting point for the legendary air route that delivered lend-lease supplies, including military aircraft and other equipment. It was a dangerous and challenging route over enormous ice-covered territories. Nevertheless, the pilots and experts of both countries did everything they could to bring victory together. They risked and sacrificed their lives for our common victory.
I have just visited the Russian city of Magadan. A monument honoring Russian and American pilots stands there, adorned with the Russian and American flags.
I know that here, too, there is a similar monument, and at a war cemetery a few kilometers away from here, there are graves of Soviet pilots who lost their lives in that heroic mission. We appreciate the efforts of U.S. officials and citizens to preserve their memory. This is a dignified and noble undertaking. We will always remember other examples from history when our countries stood together against common enemies in the spirit of combat camaraderie and alliance, rendering each other help and support. I am certain that this legacy will help us restore and develop mutually beneficial and equal ties at this new stage, even in the most challenging conditions. As you know, Russian-American summit talks have not been held for over four years. That is a long time. This period has proved exceptionally difficult for bilateral relations, and, let’s face it, they have deteriorated to their lowest point since the Cold War. And this does not benefit either our countries or the world in general. Obviously, sooner or later we had to remedy the situation, to move from confrontation to dialogue, and in this regard, an in-person meeting between the two heads of state was really overdue -- of course, with serious and thorough preparations, and this work has been done. President Trump and I have established very good direct contacts. We have had frank conversations on the phone multiple times. As you know, the U.S. President’s Special Envoy, Mr. Witkoff, has visited us in Russia several times. Our aides and heads of foreign ministries have maintained regular contacts. As you are well aware, the situation around Ukraine is one of the key issues. We acknowledge the commitment of the U.S. Administration and President Trump personally to help resolve the Ukrainian conflict, and the President’s willingness to understand the root causes and its origins. I have repeatedly said that the developments in Ukraine present fundamental threats to Russia’s national security. Moreover, we have always considered the Ukrainian people -- and I have said this many times -- a brotherly people, no matter how strange it may sound in today’s circumstances. We share the same roots, and the current situation is tragic and deeply painful to us. Therefore, our country is sincerely interested in ending this. Yet, we are convinced that, for the conflict resolution in Ukraine to be long-term and lasting, all the root causes of the crisis, which have been repeatedly explained, must be eliminated; all of Russia’s legitimate concerns must be taken into account, and a fair security balance must be restored in Europe and the rest of the world. I agree with President Trump. He said today that Ukraine’s security must be ensured by all means. Of course, we are ready to work on this. Hopefully, the understanding we have reached will bring us closer to this goal and open up the road to peace in Ukraine. We hope that Kyiv and the European capitals will take the current developments constructively and will neither try to put up obstacles nor attempt to disrupt the emerging progress with provocative acts or behind-the-scenes plots. By the way, under the new U.S. Administration, our bilateral trade has been on the rise. So far, it is a symbolic figure but still, the trade is 20 percent higher. What I am saying is that we have many interesting areas for cooperation. It is obvious that the Russian-U.S. business and investment partnership holds tremendous potential. Russia and the United States have much to offer each other in trade, energy, digital and high technologies, and space development. Cooperation in the Arctic and the resumption of region-to-region contacts, including between the Russian Far East and the West Coast of the U.S.A, also appear relevant. Overall, it is crucial and necessary that our countries turn the page and get back to cooperation. Symbolically, as I have already said, there is an international date line nearby, on the border between Russia and the United States, where you can literally step from one day into another. I hope that we can do the same in political affairs. I would like to thank Mr. Trump for our joint work and for the friendly and trust-based conversation. The main thing is that there was a commitment on both sides to produce a result. We see that the U.S. President has a clear idea of what he wants to achieve, that he sincerely cares about his country’s prosperity while showing awareness of Russia’s national interests. I hope that today’s agreements will become a reference point, not only for resolving the Ukrainian problem but also for resuming the pragmatic business relations between Russia and the United States. To conclude, I would like to add the following. I remember that in 2022, during my last contacts with the former U.S. Administration, I tried to convince my former U.S. counterpart that we should not bring the situation to a point fraught with serious repercussions in the form of hostilities, and I said directly at the time that it would be a big mistake. Today, we hear President Trump saying: “If I had been President, there would have been no war.” I believe it would have been so. I confirm this because President Trump and I have established a generally very good, businesslike and trustworthy contact. And I have every reason to believe that, as we move along this path, we can reach -- and the sooner the better -- the end of the conflict in Ukraine. Thank you for the attention. Original Text, Audio, Video, Image #2 Source: en.kremlin.ru Original Image #1 Source: Wikipedia
Original Image #3 Source: rus-amerika.mid.ru
Audio Note: AR-XE = American Rhetoric Extreme Enhancement
Video Note: Interpolated from 25fps to 50fps
Page Created: 8/20/25 |
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[as translated from the Russian language by the Kremlin] 
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