Fox News host Howard Kurtz delivered sharp criticism of President Donald Trump following his failed summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska, marking a rare instance of negative coverage from the typically Trump-friendly network. The Media Buzz host assessed the August 15 meeting as accomplishing little despite initial optimism.
Kurtz stated on his Sunday show that “it was clear not much was accomplished” at the summit, which had been designed to broker a ceasefire deal in Russia’s war with Ukraine. The nearly three-hour session failed to produce concrete results, leaving no ceasefire agreement, no detailed framework, and no opportunity for press questions during what was initially billed as a news conference.
The meeting marked the first time the Russian leader had set foot on U.S. soil in a decade, with Trump welcoming Putin on a red carpet upon his arrival in Alaska. Trump remained ambiguous during the joint press conference, saying many points were agreed to while conceding he did not achieve the peace deal he had been promoting. The session ended earlier than planned with no new sanctions imposed on Russia, despite Trump having threatened them for months.
Kurtz credited Trump for not overselling the results of what did not happen during the meeting. However, he highlighted the negative media reaction that varied sharply across different networks. The Fox News host noted that reports confirmed Trump was going along with a Putin plan that included several costly concessions, including abandoning a ceasefire and potentially ceding the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine to Russian control.
The summit occurred without Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s participation, as he had refused to engage in the peace talks. Zelensky maintained that Ukraine would not surrender the Donbas region, home to more than 200,000 people. European officials supported Ukraine’s position, stating that only Russia could end the war and that Ukraine should not be required to give up territory.
Trump responded to negative coverage with furious posts on Truth Social on August 17, declaring that fake news violently distorts the truth when reporting about him. He insisted he had a great meeting in Alaska and criticized media outlets for their coverage of the summit.
During his Media Buzz program, Kurtz welcomed guests including Rich Lowry from the National Review and former Biden aide Meghan Hays to discuss the summit’s implications. Lowry observed that Putin had moved the ball slightly in his direction by postponing ceasefire discussions and getting Trump to abandon threats of secondary sanctions and harsher measures. However, he cautioned against judging the diplomatic efforts too quickly.
Hays characterized the meeting as a massive failure, arguing that Trump allowed Putin to receive red carpet treatment on American territory both metaphorically and literally. She contended that the United States had effectively validated Putin and positioned itself as an ally of Russia rather than Ukraine and NATO partners. The former Biden administration official noted that organizing a summit without knowing what the deliverables would be represented poor diplomatic planning.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio pushed back on reports that Trump supported Putin’s plan, indicating that any territorial concessions would require Ukrainian agreement. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz revealed that Trump had previously identified a ceasefire as his highest priority, making the failure to achieve one particularly notable.
The summit’s aftermath highlighted broader challenges in Trump’s diplomatic approach to the Ukraine conflict. Putin continued bombardment of Ukraine following the meeting, with the latest attacks killing 10 people, underscoring his lack of genuine interest in peace except on maximalist terms. Military experts noted that ceding the Donbas region would provide Russia with a direct route to Kyiv, leaving Ukraine defenseless against future aggression.
Trump’s relationship with Putin has drawn scrutiny throughout his political career, including their 2018 Helsinki summit. The Alaska meeting represented another attempt at diplomatic engagement that failed to produce substantive results. Media reports indicated that Putin accepted the need for European and U.S. peacekeeping forces to protect Ukraine in any future settlement, though this represented minimal concessions from the Russian position.
The criticism from Kurtz represented a departure from typically supportive Fox News coverage of Trump’s diplomatic initiatives. The host’s assessment aligned with broader media criticism while maintaining his network’s generally favorable stance toward the former president’s foreign policy objectives.
