When President Donald Trump ordered a B-2 Spirit stealth bomber to fly over Vladimir Putin’s arrival in Alaska, it wasn’t just military showmanship—it was a statement. The $2 billion nuclear-capable aircraft, flanked by F-22 Raptors and F-35 Lightning IIs, roared across the sky as the Russian president set foot on U.S. soil for the first time in a decade.

Defense analysts say the move was a calculated geopolitical message. The B-2, capable of striking anywhere on Earth undetected, is a symbol of America’s unmatched reach. “It tells Moscow—and the world—that the U.S. is entering talks from a position of absolute strength,” one retired Air Force commander told The Daily Beast.

While supporters hailed the flyover as a power flex that would rattle the Kremlin, critics in Europe and Ukraine condemned it as theatrical provocation. “This is saber-rattling at the highest level,” said one European diplomat. “It plays well at home, but it carries risks.”