Former US President Donald Trump has defended the decision to host a summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska, countering narratives he claims have been circulated by the media.
In a post on his social media platform, Truth Social, Trump asserted that reports characterizing the summit as a defeat were inaccurate. He stated that Putin had initially preferred to hold the meeting in a location other than the United States, describing discussions about the venue as a “major point of contention”. Trump suggested that holding the summit elsewhere would have drawn criticism from media outlets he characterized as being controlled by the Democratic party.
The post also connected the summit discussions to domestic political issues, specifically addressing concerns regarding federal control of law enforcement in Washington D.C. Trump alleged that these same media outlets were attempting to highlight crime in the capital and other cities, but that he would not allow such a narrative to take hold. He drew a parallel to the situation at the southern border, claiming a substantial decrease in illegal immigration over the past three months and asserted that cities, including D.C., would be secured and protected under his leadership.