Win Sum, Lose Sum

Following the Alaska Summit, his meeting with European leaders, and a follow-up call with Putin, Trump showed off a photo that Vlad had gifted him and discussed plans to invite the Russian leader to some World Cup games. Following the same set of events, Russia Bombarded Kyiv, Killing at Least 18. “Since Mr. Trump pulled Mr. Putin out of Western diplomatic isolation by inviting him to Anchorage, Russia has made no significant concessions on any of the major sticking points between it and Ukraine, leaving the two sides no closer to peace.”

+ “European officials say they’ve grown mystified by what exactly Putin promised the Americans behind closed doors, what U.S. officials took away from their discussions with Moscow, and where that leaves the effort to achieve peace. ‘There’s mostly confusion at this point,’ a top European official told us … It’s not clear what Putin told Witkoff or Trump or if they understood him properly. It’s a puzzle that we’re all trying to solve.” The Atlantic (Gift Article): Did the White House Not Understand What Putin Was Really Offering? (Does the White House know what Trump is really offering?)

+ The Tiny White House Club Making Major National-Security Decisions. “Trump has pushed out career experts and aides who challenged him.”