FLASH
Shkruar nga Pamfleti
The spectacle seemed to take the Russian president by surprise, as he paused for a moment to properly observe the planes overhead...
Vladimir Putin shuddered as he realized, at least for a moment, that he no longer had control over the situation.
No number of armed and bulletproof Russian agents could protect him from the questions he had managed to avoid since he ordered the invasion of Ukraine.
Sitting next to Donald Trump, in front of a blue wall emblazoned with the words "seeking peace" ahead of their high-level talks in Alaska, the Russian despot was in uncharted territory.
As one journalist shouted, “Mr. Putin, are you going to break the ceasefire?” it was clear that he was not facing the Russian media, mouthpieces of the Kremlin, but surrounded by American journalists determined to hold him accountable.
His ironic smile disappeared and was replaced by a smile of alarm. He looked to his left and frowned.
“Will you pledge not to kill any more civilians?” another journalist shouted. Putin put his hands over his mouth and appeared to say something, before the press quickly left.
The moment was a brief but stark reminder to the Russian leader that, while Mr. Trump may have rolled out the red carpet for him, he is a man with an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court and on the sanctions lists of most Western governments.
After the hall turned into a chaotic, shouting brawl, the group of journalists was escorted outside.
It was the moment Putin, Trump and their advisers began the much-anticipated closed-door talks.
Less than an hour earlier, Putin had been warmly welcomed as he set foot on American soil for the first time in a decade.
At 11:08 a.m. local time, after Mr. Trump had already descended the steps of Air Force One, Putin finally exited his plane and walked quickly down the stairs to join the American leader.
At such a meeting, every little detail will have been negotiated, including which leader gets off his plane first.
With gray skies and the Alaskan mountains setting the scene behind them, the two men walked down their respective red carpets and joined each other at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson.
In an open display of warmth that was quickly criticized by the US media, Mr. Trump smiled and clapped as he waited for Putin to join him.
When the two finally met face to face, they engaged in a long handshake while exchanging pleasantries.
The images were among the most extraordinary in recent diplomatic history.
Në 42 muajt, që kur Rusia nisi luftën e saj në shkallë të plotë në Ukrainë, çdo udhëheqës perëndimor ka refuzuar të takohet me Putinin . Megjithatë, ja ku ishte zoti Trump duke e mirëpritur.
Ndërsa dy burrat u kthyen dhe ecën drejt një podiumi ku shkruhej “Alaska 2025”, një formacion me bombarduesin B-2 i shoqëruar nga avionë luftarakë F-22 Raptor fluturoi mbi kokat e tyre.
Spektakli duket se e zuri në befasi presidentin rus, ndërsa ai u ndal për një çast për të parë siç duhet aeroplanët sipër kokës.
Duke qëndruar në platformën e ngritur, të dy burrat qëndruan me krahët anash, të dy dukeshin çuditërisht të ngurtë.
Ishte momenti kur gazetarët amerikanë filluan t’i drejtonin pyetjen e parë nga shumë të tjera udhëheqësit rus.
“A e nënvlerësove Ukrainën?”, bërtiti një gazetar. Një tjetër e pyeti nëse do të ndalonte së vrari civilë ukrainas. Putini tregoi me gisht veshin e tij, duke lënë të kuptohej se nuk mund të dëgjonte.
Ishte në këtë moment që u bë një ofertë e minutës së fundit që presidenti rus të shkonte në vendin e samitit së bashku me zotin Trump në limuzinën presidenciale amerikane, “Bisha”.
Të dy udhëheqësit duhej të merreshin veçmas në pistën e aeroplanit, pasi të mbërrinin me fluturimet e tyre përkatëse.
Limuzina “Aurus” e Putinit, e kompletuar me targa ruse dhe një flamur në kapakun e motorit, kishte qenë në pritje për ta çuar atë në bisedime.
Por të dy hipën në makinën e blinduar tetë tonëshe, me vetëm dy zyrtarë sigurie që i shoqëronin në pjesën e përparme, duke ngritur dyshime në mediat amerikane në lidhje me bisedat që u zhvilluan gjatë udhëtimit të shkurtër me makinë nëpër bazën ushtarake.
Ndërsa makina po largohej, kamerat kapën Putinin me një buzëqeshje rrezatuese dhe duke i përshëndetur me dorë turmës.
Konferenca kaotike për shtyp që pasoi u mbajt pak çaste para bisedimeve zyrtare, duke shënuar herën e parë që udhëheqësit u mblodhën për një takim dypalësh ballë për ballë në gjashtë vjet. Trump ishte i shoqëruar nga Steve Witkoff, i dërguari i Lindjes së Mesme i cili më parë ka negociuar me Putinin, dhe Marco Rubio, sekretari i shtetit i SHBA-së.
Rubio e përshëndeti Putinin me një shtrëngim duarsh të ftohtë, por u duk shumë më i gëzuar me Sergei Lavrov, ministri i Jashtëm rus, me të cilin ka zhvilluar telefonata të rregullta.
Ndërsa zoti Trump fillimisht kishte planifikuar të zhvillonte diskutime kokë më kokë, ekipi i presidentit njoftoi se takimi ishte ndryshuar në një takim tre me tre vetëm disa orë para se të zhvillohej takimi.
Takimi zgjati rreth tre orë, gjysma e kohës që ishte njoftuar nga mediat ruse përpara takimit.
U raportua se një drekë midis Putinit dhe Trump ishte anuluar gjithashtu, duke sugjeruar se bisedimet e tyre kishin shkuar keq.
Mediat botërore u thirrën në një konferencë për shtyp, me një pyetje që lindi: a do të shfaqej presidenti i SHBA-së vetëm?
Nëse takimi do të kishte shkuar keq, kishte deklaruar zoti Trump, ai nuk do të qëndronte krah për krah me Putinin dhe nuk do të informonte shtypin.
But as the seats in the auditorium filled, two podiums remained on stage and a Russian speaker controlled the sound at the podium reserved for Putin.
It was Putin, not Mr. Trump, who started the press conference, a detail that even Trump's loyal network, Fox News, labeled as "truly amazing."
Putin said he wanted the war to end, but was worried that Kiev and European capitals would "impede the work."
No details were given on a ceasefire, but Putin offered Mr. Trump something he wanted: recognition that the war would not have started if he had been president in 2022.
"Today, when President Trump said that if he had been president in the past, then there would have been no war, and I am quite sure that would have been true," the Russian president said, translated into English for reporters in Alaska.
Mr. Trump, standing at his presidential podium, stared straight ahead, approving the statement with a slight bow.
For months, the US president has told anyone who would listen that he believes the Russian military would not have invaded Ukraine if he had defeated Joe Biden and retained his seat in the White House for a second consecutive term.
His Russian counterpart's willingness to accept the dubious claim served as the justification the American president had sought.
It was an olive branch from Moscow recalling their last meeting in Helsinki in 2018, when Putin, standing next to Mr. Trump at a joint press conference, insisted that Russia had not interfered in his election victory.
The press conference ended without questions, except for a rant from Putin that seemed to leave Mr. Trump speechless.
"Next time in Moscow," Putin said, speaking in English for full effect.
"Ooh, that's interesting," Mr. Trump replied.
"I don't know. I'm going to get a bit of criticism for that, but I see it as possible." / Adapted from The Telegraph /
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