Russia leaks unseen footage from Trump-Putin showdown that 'shows true power dynamic' between the leaders
Russian state media has leaked footage of what was going on backstage between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin during their recent meeting in Alaska.
The two of them met for the first time in several years to discuss possible options for peace over three years on from Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Putin reportedly wants Ukraine to cede territory to him, including parts of the country which his troops have failed to occupy.
No agreement was reached during the summit in Alaska as Trump and Putin failed to hash out details of a possible ceasefire, though any arrangement that would be acceptable to Putin would likely not be acceptable to Ukraine.
Advert
A body language expert who saw the official footage noted that Trump greeted Putin warmly when he arrived in Alaska, but was more serious with him later in the day.
However, footage leaked by Russia showing what was going on behind the scenes saw the two men appearing to be quite friendly with each other.
In the video Trump was speaking to Putin, with the Russian leader's translator standing nearby, and he was smiling as he spoke, while Putin appeared to laugh at something.
They shared another handshake and then Trump did that thing where he pats the hand of the person he's speaking to.
When he did it after Putin arrived in Alaska, body language expert Judi James called it the 'ultimate ego stroke' and said Trump was acting as though he was meeting a 'celebrity guest'.
According to the Daily Beast this footage was taken after the two of them had spoken publicly following a three hour private meeting.
People who've seen the clip aren't best pleased, saying it looks like Trump is 'fawning' over Putin who started the deadliest conflict in Europe since the Second World War.
Others said it 'shows Putin's dominance over Trump' and called it a 'victory lap video' the Kremlin released to celebrate the summit.
Some viewers lamented it as a 'worldwide embarrassment', while one person pointed out that Putin can speak English so having his translator there was a 'power move'.
According to the UK's Ministry of Defence, Putin wants Ukrainian forces to withdraw from Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhia, and Kherson, and they say at the current rate the war is progressing it would take the Russians 4.4 years to gain all of the territory they want to seize.
They predict that it would result in a further 1,930,000 casualties for Russia in terms of dead and wounded, with them having sustained around 1,060,000 casualties thus far.
Ukraine has made it clear that surrendering territory to Russia is not something they would agree to.
Topics: Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin, Russia, US News, Ukraine
Joe Harker