Russian State TV Proposes Seizing Alaska and California

Russian TV presenter Vladimir Solovyov smiles during the ceremony of the annexation of four Ukrainian regions at the Grand Kremlin Palace on September 30, 2022 in Moscow, Russia. He discussed with guests on his evening television the possibility of Moscow seizing the states of Alaska and California from the United States.

Russian propagandist Vladimir Solovyov discussed with guests on his evening television show the possibility of Moscow seizing the states of Alaska and California from the United States.

State TV presenter Solovyov, nicknamed “Putin’s voice” for his stridently pro-Kremlin views, discussed the topic on his Russia-1 show, Evening with Vladimir Solovyov.

A segment of the broadcast was shared on X, formerly known as Twitter, by Anton Gerashchenko, a former adviser to Ukraine’s minister of internal affairs. “Russian propagandists want to ‘restore historical justice’ by capturing Finland, Poland, Baltic States and Alaska. Serbia will join voluntarily, they believe,” he wrote in a caption on Wednesday.

State TV propagandists routinely float the idea of either striking or seizing the territory of NATO members. Newsweek has contacted the Russian Foreign Ministry for comment by email.

“By the way, I agree with those who say that Russia occupies [territories] unfairly,” said Vladimir Kornilov, columnist/pundit for RIA Novosti began. “Yes we need to return much more historical lands, restore historical fairness. Definitely. As for fairness…”

Solovyov interjected, saying: “California…Finland, the Baltic states—it’s all ours, of course.”

“We’ll just leave Poland,” the guest replied, to which Solovyov said: “No…well.”

The state TV guest suggested: “Let’s take Alaska, and they will give the rest themselves.”

“Only Serbia remains. The Serbs will come themselves,” Solovyov said.

Prominent Russian military bloggers and guests on state TV have suggested on multiple occasions that Russia should attempt to seize Alaska from the United States.

Alaska once belonged to Russia. In 1867, it was sold to the U.S. after then-U.S. President Andrew Johnson signed the Alaska Treaty. It gained the status of a state on January 3, 1959.

California was never part of Russia, though in the early 19th century, Russia established the outpost of Fort Ross in what is now Sonoma County, California, with Russian colonists living there between 1812 and 1841.

In January, Russian pundits questioned whether Russia could claim territory in California following reports that Putin gave Russia grounds to reclaim Alaska via a presidential decree.

The Kremlin signed a decree regarding historic Russian real estate holdings abroad, directing and funding the presidential administration and the foreign ministry in “searching for real estate in the Russian Federation, the former Russian Empire, the former USSR,” then referring to the “proper registration of rights…and legal protection of this property,” Newsweek previously reported.

The U.S. State Department quickly dismissed the speculation.

“I speak for all of us in the U.S. government to say that certainly, he is not getting it back,” State Department principal deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel said on January 22.

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