Garčević Discusses Recent Alaska Meeting Between Trump and Putin
Professor Vesko Garčević appeared on Newsmax Balkans’ foreign policy talk show “Sinteza” to share his take on the meeting between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin in Alaska intended to drive Ukraine ceasefire negotiations. Alongside Garčević, the show also featured Professor Jelica Kurjak, the former Serbian Ambassador to Moscow; and Božo Kovačević, the former Croatian Ambassador to Russia.
During the discussion, Garčević said that Putin plays “the Trump card” i.e., he capitalizes on his unusually good relations with the American President to advance his and Russia’s interests in Ukraine. Considering this dynamic, it was no surprise that the meeting in Alaska concluded without any explicit commitment to a ceasefire deal, dousing any hope for peace in Ukraine.
In the initial months of office, the Trump administration claimed that the war will end quickly, but Garčević asserted that the recent exchange made it clear that even an armistice isn’t on the table. He also pointed out that Trump doesn’t have any leverage to end the Ukraine-Russia war or negotiate a ceasefire.
With everything that unraveled at the meeting, the professor concluded by saying that Putin returned to Moscow with two short-term victories. First, the lack of ceasefire resolution in Ukraine. Second, an ambiguity around security guarantees for Ukraine.
To watch Garčević’s complete remarks, click here.
Vesko Garčević is a professor of the practice of international studies at the Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies and the director of the Center for the Study of Europe. An expert on multilateral issues, Garčević is the co-author of Montenegro and Serbia: A Velvet Divorce? (Bloomsbury Academic, 2025) which explores the divergent past between Serbia and Montenegro between 1988 and 2023. To read more about his work and accomplishments, visit his faculty profile.