Hundreds of Alaskans gathered Thursday at a busy Anchorage intersection to protest a planned meeting between President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The summit, the first in-person meeting between an American president and Putin since the latter launched his full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, is intended to lay the groundwork for a ceasefire.
Protesters of all ages assembled at the intersection of the Seward Highway and Northern Lights Boulevard on Thursday evening, eliciting honks and cheers from drivers during rush hour traffic.
Demonstrations resumed early Friday morning ahead of Putin's arrival in Anchorage. Protesters chanted pro-Kyiv slogans and demanded that Russia return the 20,000 Ukrainian children it has kidnapped from the war zone.
Ukrainian flags were visible throughout the crowd, accompanied by a marching band, a cadre of foreign news correspondents, and a variety of creative signs.
Some targeted Trump policies unrelated to the summit, while others directly criticised the planned Friday meeting between Trump and Putin.
The decision to host the meeting in Alaska drew strong reactions from participants, many of whom objected to inviting Putin to American soil in a state that was once Russian territory before being sold to the United States in 1867.
One sign read, “I can see fascists from my house,” referencing a “Saturday Night Live” parody of former Governor Sarah Palin’s 2008 remark about Alaska’s proximity to Russia.
The rally’s local organisers stated on social media that "Alaska opposes tyranny" and urged supporters to "come together in Anchorage, Alaska, to protest against an international war criminal hanging out here."
The Native Movement NGO called the decision "a betrayal of our history and the moral clarity demanded by the suffering of Ukraine and other occupied peoples" and urged Trump not to make a deal with Putin.
“Putin won’t stop at Ukraine,” read another sign, reflecting a fear among some Alaskans that the Russian leader could attempt to reassert control over Alaska.
The protest was organised and promoted by a coalition of progressive groups, which plan to hold more demonstrations on Friday.
Trump has said he intends to arrange a trilateral meeting with the Ukrainian president and Putin soon after the Alaska summit.
He added that there were “three ideas” for the location of that meeting and that “by far the easiest” option would be to remain in Alaska.