White House releases behind-the-scenes photos of Trump’s meeting with Putin
The White House on Tuesday released dozens of behind-the-scenes photographs documenting last week’s historic meeting between President Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska.
Several of the 72 images, taken by chief White House photographer Daniel Torok, show Trump and Putin arriving at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage for the bilateral summit and locked in conversation in the hallways of the sprawling military installation.
Others show the president and his team preparing for the high-stakes summit aboard Air Force One, as well as their return flight to Washington, during which Trump phoned Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to discuss the meeting.
Trump, his Cabinet members and top advisers appeared relaxed but busy during the 7-hour flight to Anchorage, the photos show.
In one shot, the president is seen standing behind his chair at the head of a conference table on the presidential plane during a meeting with CIA Director John Ratcliffe, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Communications Director Steven Cheung.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio and special envoy Steve Witkoff – both of whom would later join Trump in the room with Putin, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and diplomatic adviser Yury Ushakov – could also be seen meeting with the president and chief of staff Susie Wiles in his office aboard Air Force One.
One of the most striking photos shows Trump speaking sternly with Putin backstage, ahead of their joint press conference, with his outstretched finger pointed directly in the center of the Russian leader’s chest and only a translator standing between the men.
The two leaders huddled again after the press conference, the photographs show. In one image, Trump appears to be resting his hand on Putin’s shoulder, with his back turned to the camera, as they prepared to go their separate ways.
Another snapshot shows Putin admiring a piece of artwork – depicting reindeer crossing an icy landscape – that adorns a hallway in the military installation, which was used during the Cold War to monitor the Soviet Union.
The photo roll included a dramatic shot of the B-2 bomber, flanked by F-22 fighter jets, that flew over Putin’s head shortly after he shook hands with Trump on the tarmac.
Also included were images of Trump glaring at Putin during their presser, as the US president’s team looked on in the front row.
There is even a photograph of Putin’s limo parked next to “The Beast” — showing some of the differences between the two presidential vehicles.
Trump proclaimed that “great progress” was made toward ending Moscow’s war on Ukraine after the nearly three-hour-long meeting with Putin in Alaska, but no deal was struck.