The White House on 19 August released an official photograph showing President Donald Trump speaking by speakerphone with Russian President Vladimir Putin from the Oval Office. Vice President Pence and Secretary of State Marco Rubio were seated nearby, underscoring the administration’s direct involvement in the call. Three days later, during an Oval Office announcement about the 2026 World Cup draw, Trump brandished a separate photograph that he said Putin had sent of the two leaders standing side-by-side at their summit in Anchorage, Alaska, a week earlier. The president said he planned to sign the picture and return it to Putin, adding that the Russian leader had been “very respectful of me and our country.” According to ABC News, the Alaska meeting marked the first in-person encounter between the two presidents since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Trump subsequently hosted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European leaders in Washington and said he was arranging a face-to-face between Putin and Zelenskyy. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, however, told NBC News that no such summit is scheduled and that the agenda for it “is not ready at all.” Asked about a recent Russian strike on a U.S. electronics plant in Ukraine, Trump said he was “not happy” with the war and would decide within two weeks whether to respond with “massive sanctions or massive tariffs,” or to refrain from further action. The comments suggest the White House is weighing next steps even as it publicly highlights the leaders’ recent contacts.