President Trump erupted on Truth Social over the weekend, torching the press for its harsh coverage of his high-stakes summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska.
President Trump spent much of Sunday firing back at critics who downplayed his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, using several Truth Social posts to accuse mainstream outlets of twisting the facts.
The summit, held Friday in Alaska, drew sharp criticism over the optics of a red carpet welcome and the absence of clear, publicized achievements.
Trump is slated to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Washington on Monday, as the White House continues efforts to negotiate an end to the grinding three-year war between Russia and Ukraine.
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) August 18, 2025
The president vented online Sunday evening, mocking reports that framed the Alaska summit as a loss.
“The Fake News has been saying for 3 days that I suffered a ‘major defeat’ by allowing President Vladimir Putin of Russia to have a major Summit in the United States,” Trump wrote.
He insisted Putin had resisted the location but ultimately agreed, arguing that if the summit had been held elsewhere, the same critics would have pounced with a different complaint.
Earlier in the day, Trump launched another attack against legacy networks.
President Trump encourages Americans to turn off the fake news:
“There is NOTHING I can say or do that would lead them to write or report honestly about me.”
He’s right. pic.twitter.com/hDSYKDSoyX
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) August 17, 2025
“It’s incredible how the Fake News violently distorts the TRUTH when it comes to me,” he said.
“There is NOTHING I can say or do that would lead them to write or report honestly about me,” Trump added. “I had a great meeting in Alaska on Biden’s stupid War, a war that should have never happened!!!”
In a follow-up post, he mocked the idea that no deal would satisfy the media, joking that even if Moscow itself were handed over in negotiations, his opponents would claim it was a blunder.
🚨 BREAKING: President Trump says the media would still say he made a “bad deal” even if he got Putin to give up Moscow as part of a peace deal
“Also, they should talk about the 6 WARS, etc., I JUST STOPPED!!! MAGA”
He’s going off this morning. pic.twitter.com/CFmTn4On0c
— Charlie Ward (@CharlieWard__1) August 17, 2025
“That’s why they are the FAKE NEWS,” he wrote, before touting a string of ceasefires he said his administration recently helped broker.
“Also, they should talk about the 6 WARS, etc., I JUST STOPPED!!!”
Trump also zeroed in on Zelensky ahead of their face-to-face meeting.
“President Zelenskyy of Ukraine can end the war with Russia almost immediately, if he wants to, or he can continue to fight,” he posted.
Lock Them Up! Russiagate is reigniting…
Obama, Clinton, Comey, and Brennan are all on the hook!
CLICK HERE to demand Russiagate conspirators got to prison!
He dismissed Ukraine’s NATO ambitions outright and rejected the idea of returning Crimea to Kyiv’s control.
His remarks recalled the contentious February dust-up between the two leaders.
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) August 18, 2025
“Remember how it started. No getting back Obama given Crimea (12 years ago, without a shot being fired!), and NO GOING INTO NATO BY UKRAINE,” he continued. “Some things never change!!!”
Zelensky responded late Sunday on X, stressing his commitment to defending Ukraine’s sovereignty and warning against any suggestion of ceding territory.
“We all share a strong desire to end this war quickly and reliably. And peace must be lasting,” he wrote.
The Ukrainian leader also reminded followers of Russia’s earlier annexations.
“Of course, Crimea should not have been given up then, just as Ukrainians did not give up Kyiv, Odesa, or Kharkiv after 2022,” he added.
Zelensky rejected Trump’s assertion that he alone could halt the conflict.
“Ukrainians are fighting for their land, for their independence. Now, our soldiers have successes in Donetsk and Sumy regions,” he declared.
I have already arrived in Washington, tomorrow I am meeting with President Trump. Tomorrow we are also speaking with European leaders. I am grateful to @POTUS for the invitation. We all share a strong desire to end this war quickly and reliably. And peace must be lasting. Not…
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) August 18, 2025
Still, Zelensky acknowledged American backing, saying his people “will always be grateful to President Trump, everyone in America, and every partner and ally for their support and invaluable assistance.”
While Trump and Zelensky prepare to meet, Secretary of State Marco Rubio pushed back against speculation that European leaders are only joining Monday’s gathering to prevent Trump from strong-arming Ukraine into concessions.
Appearing on “Face the Nation,” CBS host Margaret Brennan asked if allies were coming “as backup” to keep Zelensky from being “bullied.”
Rubio dismissed the framing outright. “No, it isn’t. … That’s not true,” he said.
“They’re not coming here to keep Zelenskyy from being bullied … Do you know how many meetings we’ve had since then? We’ve had a bunch of meetings since then.”
.@SecRubio nukes Margaret Brennan: "This is such a stupid media narrative that [European leaders] are coming here tomorrow because Trump is going to bully Zelensky into a bad deal. We've been working with these people for weeks… WE invited them to come." 🔥 pic.twitter.com/YoiyyA3xsp
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) August 17, 2025
He doubled down, calling the claim a “stupid media narrative.” According to Rubio, European leaders were invited by the administration, not showing up as watchdogs.
“They’re coming here tomorrow because they chose to come here tomorrow. We invited them to come here tomorrow. We invited them to come. The president invited them to come,” he said.
Rubio said progress made during the Alaska talks justified bringing additional leaders into the process.
He also lashed out at ABC’s Martha Raddatz after she suggested Trump had “elevated” Putin by rolling out the red carpet.
“Critics of President Trump will say the pomp and circumstance … the red carpet, the warm handshake — that President Trump simply lost that, that Putin gained there just by being on the world stage and walking down a red carpet with the president,” Raddatz said.
.@SecRubio: "What utility would there be of me going on a program and telling you we wagged our finger at Putin and told him you must do this? … As much as everyone would love it to be a live PPV event, these discussions ONLY work best when they are conducted privately." pic.twitter.com/8LFJj06Fgq
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) August 17, 2025
Rubio laughed off the charge. “Critics of President Trump are always going to find something to criticize, we don’t even pay attention to it anymore, but I will tell you this: Putin is already on the world stage.”
He noted that with Russia waging war for more than three years and maintaining the second-largest nuclear arsenal on the planet, Putin hardly needed Trump to be legitimized.
“When I hear people say that, ‘Oh, it elevates him,’ all we do is talk about Putin all the time. All the media’s done is talk about Putin all the time for the last four or five years,” Rubio explained.
“That doesn’t mean he’s right about the war … it means you’re not going to end a war between Russia and Ukraine without dealing with Putin.”
Rubio insisted that negotiations required privacy, refusing to disclose potential concessions.
“What utility would there be of me going on a program and telling you we wagged our finger at Putin and told him you must do this?” he asked.
“As much as everyone would love it to be a live pay-per-view event, these discussions ONLY work best when they are conducted privately.”