President Donald Trump’s former national security adviser thought he looked “tired” at his Alaska summit, which did him no favors standing opposite Russian President Vladimir Putin.
John Bolton said on CNN that Putin “clearly won” the high-profile encounter on Friday given that he escaped without agreeing to a ceasefire with Ukraine and without additional sanctions on Russia.
“Trump didn’t come away with anything except more meetings,” Bolton said. “Putin has, I think, gone a long way to reestablishing the relationship, which I’ve always believed was his key goal. He has escaped sanctions. He’s not facing a ceasefire. The next meeting is not set.”
Bolton claimed that Trump avoided outright embarrassing himself, as critics said he did the last time the world leaders met in 2018. Bolton remarked that Trump “did not lose” on Friday, but said he also did not pull off an “Art of the Deal” miracle.
“It’s far from over, but I’d say Putin achieved most of what he wanted,” Bolton said, in agreement with other top foreign affairs experts. “Trump achieved very little.”
Perhaps the most concerning takeaway from Friday’s summit was Trump’s physical state, Bolton suggested.
“I thought Trump looked very tired up there,” he said. “I mean very tired—not disappointed, tired.”
Bolton was not the only one to remark that Trump, 79, appeared sluggish. Some said his demeanor expressed defeat after his meeting with Putin, 72, did not establish a clear path to peace, as he promised his supporters would be done on day one of his presidency.
It is no small hike from the White House to Anchorage, Alaska, where Friday’s meeting was held. After taking Marine One to Joint Base Andrews, the jet had to fly 3,500 miles one-way to the nation’s northernmost state. Trump kept busy on the way, too, recording an interview with Fox News host Sean Hannity.
Many noted that Trump showed his age immediately upon arrival at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson. After stepping off Air Force One to greet Putin, the president struggled to walk in a straight line down a red carpet.
By the day’s end, photos appeared to show that Trump’s eyes were heavy. Despite billing a post-meeting event as a “press conference,” Trump, unlike his usual self, declined to answer questions from the bustling press pool, and some noted his cankles were showing. Trump immediately headed back for Washington, with a second interview with Hannity—and an hour and a half long phone call to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky—also made along the way.
