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Kyiv independent: 'A disgusting summit, total Putin victory'

'Disgusting, disgraceful and ultimately unnecessary' is how the summit between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin is judged by the Ukrainian newspaper Kyiv Independent in an editorial that opens the site, recalling the treatment with all honours reserved for the tsar in contrast to the humiliation reserved for Volodymyr Zelensky in February at the White House.

by Enrico Bronzo

16 August 2025

2' min read

Key points

Kiev media: "A disgusting summit, total Putin victory"
Axios: Zelensky to meet Trump in Washington on Monday

2' min read

Trump to Zelensky, Putin wants global agreement not truce

Donald Trump said in the phone call with Voloymyr Zelensky and Nato leaders that Russian President Vladimir Putin does not want a ceasefire but prefers a comprehensive agreement to end the war in Ukraine. Axios journalist Barak Ravid writes this on X, citing a source present on the call. "I think a quick peace agreement is better than a ceasefire," Trump himself said according to the source, who called the phone call with the Ukrainian leader and that of Nato "not easy".

Axios: Zelensky to meet Trump in Washington on Monday

As early as Monday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will be in Washington to meet with US President Donald Trump. This was reported by Axios. According to US online media journalist Barak Ravid, 'Ukrainian President Zelensky has decided to travel to Washington on Monday to meet with President Trump'. On August bank holiday, Trump had a summit in Alaska with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Kiev media: 'A disgusting summit, total Putin victory'

'Disgusting, shameful and ultimately pointless' is how the summit between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin is judged by the Ukrainian newspaper Kyiv Independent in an editorial that opens the site, recalling the treatment with all honours reserved for the tsar in contrast to the humiliation reserved for Volodymyr Zelensky in February at the White House. The lesson from this, he writes, is that 'Putin doesn't make deals, he just takes'. "Trump," reads the Kyiv Independent, "did not get what he wanted. But Putin? He certainly did. From the moment he stepped off the plane onto US soil, the Russian dictator was beaming. No longer an international pariah, he was finally gaining the acceptance and respect of the leader of the free world. Trump's predecessor had once called Putin 'a murderer'; Trump instead offered him a royal welcome.

Trump welcomed Putin with a red carpet, warm handshakes, a flyover of US bombers and a limo ride in the back seat.

'The friendly attitude,' it goes on to say, 'was in stark contrast to Trump's hostile reception of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in the Oval Office six months earlier. The Ukrainian president was publicly humiliated. The Russian one was spoiled. Both episodes were shameful. 'Trump,' the Ukrainian newspaper's commentary continues, 'seemed to believe that a warm meeting might placate Putin and make a ceasefire more likely. But there is one lesson Trump has not yet learned: the Russian leader does not make deals, he takes. He takes what is offered, and then he takes again, and keeps taking until he is stopped by force. This is the Russian art of the deal'.