Washington DC - President Donald Trump recently sparked a slew of criticism after he hung a photo of himself with Russian President Vladimir Putin in the White House.

In an X post shared on Tuesday, PBS News correspondent Elizabeth Landers shared a photo of something she noticed for the first time in the Palm Room of the White House – "a framed photo of Presidents Trump and Putin at their summer summit in Alaska."

Kirill Dmitriev, Putin's special envoy, shared a post praising the photo, writing, "Good. A picture is worth a thousand words."

During the 2024 presidential election, Trump repeatedly vowed to end the conflict between Russia and Ukraine "on day one," but a year into his presidency, he has yet to fulfill the promise.

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The Alaska summit took place in August 2025 and marked the first in-person meeting between the leaders since Trump's election win. At the time, Trump received significant criticism for "cozying up" to Putin, who invaded Ukraine, and having a literal red carpet rolled out for his arrival.

In a statement to The Guardian, a White House spokesperson said the photo was chosen to be displayed because the summit "was a historic moment that helped bring Ukraine and Russia, whose brutal war was brought on by Joe Biden's incompetence, closer to a deal."

"This is one of many accomplishments that President Trump chooses to feature at the White House, where photographs are rotated frequently to highlight Presidential travel," they added.

Throughout his career in politics, Trump has been accused of having an affinity for dictators.

In his second term, he has sought to build his relationship with Putin while largely excluding Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky from peace talks.

Most recently, the president invited Putin to his newly formed Board of Peace, allowing the leader to bypass the required $1 billion entrance fee.

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The decision to hang the photo has been significantly criticized by politicians – both within the US and internationally.

Democratic Senator Mark Warner of Virginia commented that the move from Trump to hang a photo of Putin "above the American people and his own family" was "almost a little too on the nose."

Marko Mihkelson, the chair of Estonia's parliamentary foreign affairs committee, wrote in a post, "If it is true that the US president considers it appropriate to hang on the White House wall a photo of the greatest war criminal of the 21st century, then a just and sustainable peace will have to wait. Unfortunately."