President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia may arrive to a somewhat chilly reception in Alaska next week, as the state that has long made efforts to deepen and even celebrate its ties to the country has soured on its neighbor across the Bering Sea.
President Trump said on Friday that he would meet with Mr. Putin on Aug. 15 in Alaska, in an attempt to secure a deal to end the war between Russia and Ukraine. Mr. Trump had earlier suggested that a peace deal between the two countries could include “some swapping of territories,” signaling that the United States may join Russia in trying to compel Ukraine to permanently cede some of its land.
David Ramseur, who was an aide to the former Alaska governors Tony Knowles and Steve Cowper, said the setting for the summit is knotty given how the historical “affinity” between Alaskans and Russians has weakened since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“Alaska boosters have been pushing for Alaska as an international gateway for basically since statehood,” said Mr. Ramseur, who wrote the book “Melting the Ice Curtain: The Extraordinary Story of Citizen Diplomacy on the Russia-Alaska Frontier.” “So in that sense, it’s good for Alaska. Puts us on the map for a couple of hours.”
Alaska has deep ties to Russian history and culture, dating back to when the Russian Empire first colonized the region in the 18th century. Since the United States purchased the land in 1867, Russian-speaking communities have stayed in the state, and Russian Orthodox Churches, with their distinct onion-shaped domes, can be found from the remote Aleutian Islands to Anchorage, Alaska’s largest city.
“Russian culture and Russian history is sort of baked into Alaska,” said Brandon Boylan, a professor at the University of Alaska Fairbanks who has researched Alaska’s role in U.S.-Russia relations. “There’s a lot of remnants of the Russian American legacy.”
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