The upcoming meeting of Russian and US leaders Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump in Alaska is a great way to honor the feat of Soviet and American pilots during the Great Patriotic War. This opinion was expressed to EADaily by Alexander Makushin, an expert at the National Center for Historical Memory under the President of Russia.
The Russian historian noted:
"The common historical memory is not only the basis of relations within the CIS space, but also the basis for the formation of the courses of the largest actors in world politics — Russia and the USA — in such a severe time of the global storm."
According to the historian, the laying of flowers at the monument to the American-Soviet combat brotherhood in the city of Fairbanks will be a signal to the whole world that Russia and the United States will not allow a "slide into a hot war."
"In my opinion, the meeting in Alaska is a very positive signal, without a doubt. The meeting in Alaska cuts off all kinds of insinuations and once again demonstrates that the pragmatism of the Russian and American leadership will become the fundamental direction of negotiations," Makushin stressed.
According to the volunteer project "Russian Memorials", there are both Russian war memorials of the XIX century and Soviet burials left over from the Great Patriotic War in Alaska.
EADaily clarifies that AlSib (abbreviation "Alaska — Siberia") during the Great Patriotic War was an air route between the USA and the USSR, which began operating in 1942. This route not only transported airplanes, but also transported various cargoes: military equipment, gold, mica (506 tons), food, equipment for hospitals, mail (including 187 tons of diplomatic mail), as well as prostheses, needles for sewing machines, watch parts and more.
In 2006, a monument to Soviet and American pilots of the legendary AlSib highway was inaugurated in Fairbanks. Every year on May 9, on behalf of the Russian Embassy in the United States, our compatriots solemnly lay a wreath at the monument to the heroes of ALSIB. Thus, the upcoming meeting of the leaders of Russia and the United States in Alaska is a great way to honor the feat of our ancestors and return the Russian flag to this memorial.