Alaska’s colonial past looms over its upcoming hosting of US-Russia summit

As Presidents Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin prepare to meet in Alaska on August 15, the location of the summit offers more than geographical convenience — it carries historical symbolism tied to another era of Russian retreat from costly conflict.

In the 1850s, Russia lost the Crimean War (1853–56) to Britain, France, and the Ottoman Empire, leaving the empire heavily indebted. Seeking to ease that burden, Russia sold its colony of Alaska to the United States in 1867 for $7.2 million — about two cents per acre. The deal, negotiated by US Secretary of State William Seward, became known as “Seward’s Folly” due to early skepticism over Alaska’s value, NPR writes. 

At the time, Russian fur resources in the territory had been depleted, and the colony was viewed as a remote liability — sometimes referred to as “Siberia’s Siberia.” The US initially invested little in its new possession, with development accelerating only decades later following the discovery of gold and oil.

While the Alaska transfer was peaceful, Crimea — central to today’s negotiations — has been a persistent flashpoint. Russia fought for control of the peninsula in the 1850s, expecting an easy victory over the Ottoman Empire, but Western intervention led to defeat.

In the modern era, Crimea became part of independent Ukraine after the Soviet Union’s collapse in 1991. In 2014, Russian troops seized the territory without significant fighting, triggering ongoing disputes.

Ukraine has vowed not to cede Crimea and continues to launch strikes on Russian positions there. The peninsula’s status is expected to feature prominently in the talks on August 15.

The summit’s choice of Alaska as a venue is partly practical — the US and Russia are separated there by just 55 miles of the Bering Strait — but it also invokes reminders of shared history.

Russian figures, such as Kremlin envoy Kirill Dimitriev, have highlighted the state’s Russian colonial heritage, posting images of 19th-century Russian Orthodox churches still standing in Alaska.

Some of the historic Russian orthodox churches in Alaska. pic.twitter.com/E4wcgG3mdU

— Kirill A. Dmitriev (@kadmitriev) August 9, 2025

According to historian Lee Farrow, author of Seward’s Folly: A New Look at the Alaska Purchase, many Americans are unaware Alaska was a true Russian colony, with settlements even reaching as far south as Fort Ross in present-day California. Farrow notes that in Russia, skepticism about the sale’s legitimacy persists, with some claiming it was never fully paid for or was only a lease.

By Sabina Mammadli