No Deals with War Criminals on Alaska Soil
Anchorage, Alaska – As President Donald Trump prepares to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska on August 15 to discuss the Ukrainian crisis, Native Movement stands with Alaskans and those across the country who condemn any attempt to legitimize Russia’s war crimes on Alaskan lands.
Alaska knows the cost of Russian imperialism. For over a century, Russian colonizers stole and exploited land, decimated Alaska Native populations through violence, disease, and enslavement, and erased cultures with religious supremacy. Today, we see the same imperial playbook in Ukraine: annexation of territory, targeting of civilians, and the forcible deportation of over 20,000 Ukrainian children—a war crime under international law.
Alaska’s history with Russian rule doesn’t make us neutral — it makes us witnesses.
The decision to host Putin, a war criminal, on Alaskan soil is a betrayal of our history and the moral clarity demanded by the suffering of Ukraine and other occupied peoples.
Native Movement voices opposition to any deals that force Ukraine to cede territory, reward aggression, or silence the voices of those whose lives are at stake. We stand against the rise of fascism and violent occupation everywhere—whether in Ukraine, Palestine, or here in Alaska. None of us are free until all of us are free.
Alaska's own experience with resource-driven governance shows how oil wealth erodes democracy and empowers authoritarianism, just as we see in Russia's war on Ukraine. Hosting war criminals in Alaska is a betrayal of our communities and our future.
Petro-states like Russia and the U.S. have built empires on extractive violence. Oil wealth correlates with increased crime and political corruption. Alaska's large military presence is tied not to community safety but to protecting oil and gas infrastructure, resource extraction, and broader U.S. economic and military interests.
Meanwhile, Russia floods global markets with hatchery-raised salmon, undercutting Alaska fisheries, destabilizing prices, and threatening wild stocks. These hatcheries, concentrated in Sakhalin and Kamchatka, release hundreds of millions of juvenile salmon annually. Indigenous communities, who have long relied on salmon for food, culture, and spiritual practice, are disproportionately affected. Bycatch isn't just waste, it's a symptom of broken systems. Current regulations in the U.S. and Russia ignore the compounding ecological harm and force Indigenous communities to bear the full burden on conservation while outside investors reap the profits.
Therefore, we reject deals that reward extractive violence, whether through war, occupation, or climate destruction. Resource-driven regimes not only silence dissent; they deepen gender inequality and erode community well-being. Petro-states often build national pride around oil wealth, masking inequality and environmental harm. In contrast, Indigenous cultures emphasize stewardship, reciprocity, and sustainability.
We reject any deals that:
Reward extractive violence, whether through war, occupation, or climate destruction
Reward territorial conquest through violence
Legitimize ANY war criminal's crimes
Ignore the voices of those whose land and lives are at stake
We demand:
No legitimization of war criminals on our soil
Justice for every child stolen from their families
Recognition that territorial sovereignty cannot be negotiated away by outside powers
Accountability for war crimes, not rewards for aggression
Alaska was never Russia's to sell
The 1867 Treaty of Cession between Russia and the United States is often depicted as a sale of Alaska for $7.2 million. But this narrative erases the sovereignty of Alaska's Indigenous nations and misrepresents the nature of Russian presence in the region.
Russia's colonial footprint in Alaska was limited, they never controlled or occupied the whole of Alaska. Defeated in battles with the Tlingit and Ahtna nations, Russian settlers were confined to a few trading posts and some parcels of land. They never fully colonized or controlled the vast territory they claimed.
The Treaty of Cession did not transfer ownership of Alaska; it transferred Russia's claim to the land, not legal title. Indigenous nations have long-standing governance systems and did not recognize Russian sovereignty. Captain Charles Bryant of the U.S. Treasury Department reported in 1870, the Tlingit "never recognized the Russians as owning their land" and believed Russia had no right to sell it.
Many Alaska Native leaders protested the sale, asserting that they were rightful stewards of the land. The treaty classified Native peoples as "uncivilized tribes," denying us citizenship and legal recognition unless we abandoned our cultures and assimilated to "white man ways." When it should have been settler colonialists assimilating to our way of life, as we thrived and cared for these lands for millennia. This racist framework laid the foundation for genocide, land theft, and cultural erasure.
The sale of Alaska was not a legal transfer of land, but a colonial transaction that ignored Indigenous sovereignty. The U.S. government assumed control without consultation, and Alaska Native peoples were left in legal limbo, denied rights to our own traditional lands and territories, resources, and self-determination.
Today, we reject the legacy of this illegal and unethical sale. We honor the original nations of Alaska, whose stewardship predates colonization and whose rights remain unceded.
Alaska’s Indigenous communities, survivors of Russian colonialism, speak from hard-earned moral authority. We know the pain of land treated as a commodity, people as expendable, and children as property to be seized. Our history makes us witnesses to the struggles of Ukraine, Palestine, and all peoples fighting for their sovereignty and justice for their future generations.
We call on Alaskans and the global community to join us in saying: Not again. Not in Ukraine. Not in Palestine. Not anywhere. Alaskans stands with Ukraine and all oppressed peoples because we know the true cost of imperialism and fascism. No deals with war criminals.
QUOTES
“Alaska’s history teaches us the devastating cost of imperialism and fascism. From the Russian occupation of our lands to Putin’s war in Ukraine and the ongoing oppression in Palestine, we see the same pattern of violence and erasure. We stand with all who resist, because true freedom is collective—none of us are free until all of us are free.” – Enei Begaye, Executive Director Native Movement
"Our voice during this time is important because we remember what many have forgotten: that behind every territorial ambition lies the suffering of real families, real communities, real children torn from their homes." - Princess Johnson, Board Member Native Movement
“The meeting between Trump and Putin on Indigenous Alaskan lands is an affront to our history and to the global fight against fascism. We cannot normalize war criminals or negotiate away sovereignty, whether in Ukraine, Palestine, or anywhere else. Our communities know the impacts of generational harm caused by oppresive occupations, and we demand justice for all who face violent occupation today.” – Taa’ąįį Peter
"" The sale of “Alaska” was illegal. Our Tlingít people do not need any reminders of the time spent under Russian rule. My clan, the Kiks.ádi, has spent years healing from the devastation of the battle against the Russians in 1804. We have to live with constant reminders of the Russian occupation, just through hearing the name Baranof and other Russian names. Let Trump go to Russia for this visit." - Louise Brady, Native Movement Board Member
Native Movement Background
Native Movement is a state-wide Alaska-based non-profit organization dedicated to building people power, rooted in an Indigenized worldview, toward healthy, sustainable, & just communities for ALL. We work to build a world that embraces Indigenous values of reciprocity and respect with all beings. Our actions are grounded in ceremony, justice, and love in support of regenerative communities. Native Movement supports grassroots-led projects that align with our vision, that endeavor to ensure social justice, Indigenous Peoples’ rights, and the rights of Mother Earth.
Formed in 2003 out of Arctic Village, AK with a vision of grassroots-led movements and healthy Indigenous nations building strong, healing, and sustainable communities for all and for Mother Earth. Our primary organizing hubs are in Fairbanks and Anchorage.
Native Movement believes that in order to make meaningful and lasting change it is critical to address root-causes and dismantle oppressive systemic power structures. Grassroots leadership rooted in responsibility to community and utilizing strategies grounded in an Indigenized worldview and decolonizing frameworks is a powerful path forward.
Our trainings, workshops, and camps are shaped from an Indigenous worldview, which emphasizes deep acknowledgment of place-based knowledge and the joy and responsibility of building community. A decolonizing practice requires recognition of the history of colonization and its current manifestations. Our most popular training briefly covers United States Federal Indian Policy carried out dominantly in the lower 48 and its expansion into Alaska policy and the implications on Alaska Native peoples.
Learn more about our work and self-led trainings: https://www.nativemovement.org/workshops
Additional Resources:
https://anthc.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/ABE-Resource-List.pdf
Video: Sharing Our Knowledge: Russian Occupation of Alaska: https://www.youtube.com/embed/htxzGlQ2lC0