Sergei Chapnin
The world's attention was riveted on the Putin-Trump meeting in Alaska on August 15. New agreements—what Trump calls a "deal"—were expected from the encounter at Elmendorf-Richardson Air Force Base in Anchorage. But no real breakthrough on the path to peace in Ukraine occurred. The outcome was profoundly discouraging: emptiness. In that emptiness, Putin's personal triumph resounded even more clearly: his political isolation was over. Now he can walk the red carpets of other countries and ride in the same limousine as the U.S. president.
But Putin's brief visit to the U.S. also acquired an unexpected dimension: a religious one. Alongside his talks with Trump, Putin met with Archbishop Alexei (Trader) of Sitka and Alaska, a hierarch of the Orthodox Church in America (OCA).
Cold Calculation and a Sleeping Conscience
This meeting was no accident or formality. It should be seen as a carefully orchestrated propaganda operation, for which reason the details matter.
The encounter took place in an informal setting, at a cemetery where Soviet pilots from World War II are buried. Judging by video footage, apart from Putin and Archbishop Alexei, no one else was present except for a dozen officers from the presidential security detail. Everything was arranged so that no outsider could reach the site or plan anything: neither protesters nor journalists knew about it.
Apparently, Archbishop Alexei did not even consider questioning this unusual format or inviting Putin to visit a church, which would have been more natural and traditional. This suggests he had been briefed ahead of time about his role in this propaganda exercise. I have no doubt he was warned: there will be no questions about the war. And he agreed in advance.