It was a welcome tailored for a close friend, not a war criminal, and it looked to the Ukrainians like their nightmare.

President Donald Trump and President Vladimir Putin of Russia met Friday in Anchorage, Alaska, for the first face-to-face meeting between American and Russian leaders since Russia invaded Ukraine in early 2022.

President Donald Trump’s high-profile meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin adjourned their brief summit Friday without announcing a breakthrough in negotiations to end Russia’s three-year-old invasion of Ukraine.