The Trump-Putin summit will take place in a former Russian colony that the United States bought for $7.2 million in 1867. Here’s how the deal came together and why its legacy matters.

(Reuters) -In the early hours of Saturday morning following a summit in Alaska between the leaders of Russia and the United States, senior politicians in Moscow were quick to trumpet the meeting as a win for Russia and its narrative of the war in Ukraine.

Russia's decision to sell Alaska was influenced by its financial struggles following the Crimean War and the desire to strengthen ties with the United States, a fellow rival of Great Britain. Selling Alaska provided Russia with much-needed cash and ensured that Britain would not gain control of the territory.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov held calls on Saturday with his Turkish and Hungarian counterparts, the Russian foreign ministry said, hours after a summit between the U.S. and Russian presidents yielded no deal on ending the war in Ukraine.

ANCHORAGE—Dozens of Russian Orthodox faithful joined in prayer ahead of Friday’s summit between President Trump and Vladimir Putin, hoping for peace between Russia and Ukraine. “Let our leaders yearn for peace when they meet,

The U.S. Navy said it frequently conducts exercises and operations in the North Pacific Ocean to support maritime homeland defense.

Alaska, the US state that will host the meeting between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump on Friday, is a source of imperial nostalgia and often less-than-serious territorial claims in Russia.In 2014, Vladimir Putin,

Russian President Vladimir Putin has denied accusations that his Ukraine invasion is aimed at resurrecting the Soviet empire, even though he once described its collapse as “the greatest geopolitical catastrophe” of the 20th century.