Putin Frames Ukraine Conflict as a Struggle Over Russia's Lost Influence

Amid pre-summit discussions focused on potential land exchanges and cease-fire arrangements in Ukraine, President Vladimir Putin clarified after his meeting in Alaska with President Trump that his primary concern extends beyond ending over three years of conflict. Instead, he emphasized what he referred to as the 'situation around Ukraine,' a phrase that encapsulates his longstanding grievances over Russia’s lost prominence on the global stage.

Revisiting complaints he first voiced forcefully at the 2007 Munich security conference and reiterated in February 2022 when launching the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Putin insisted in his post-summit remarks that 'a fair balance in the security sphere in Europe and the world as a whole must be restored.'

He argued that only by addressing this imbalance could the 'root causes of the crisis' in Ukraine be resolved — a reference to Russia’s decline in influence following its defeat in the Cold War and the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, which ended Moscow’s dominance over Eastern Europe.

Putin avoided directly mentioning the ongoing war, stating only that he was 'genuinely interested' in stopping 'what is happening,' pointing to the shared cultural and historical roots of Russians and Ukrainians and describing the situation as 'a tragedy and a great pain' for Russia. This narrative, which portrays Russia as a victim despite initiating the conflict, has been a consistent theme of Kremlin messaging since the invasion was launched under the guise of a 'special military operation' in 2022.

Laurynas Kasciunas, Lithuania’s former defense minister, observed that 'Putin and Russia are revisionist; they cannot accept having lost the Cold War.' Lithuania, like Poland, the Czech Republic, Romania, and several other former members of the Soviet-led Warsaw Pact, has since joined NATO, further challenging Moscow’s former sphere of influence.