For most of his quarter-century rule, President Vladimir Putin visited Paris, London, Vienna and New York. Since Moscow invaded Ukraine , however, his destinations have been places like Minsk, Pyongyang, Hanoi and Beijing, as the West sought to turn Russia into a pariah.

Russia has countered Western attempts to isolate it by bolstering its ties with ex-Soviet allies and other developing countries. Putin’s travel also has been limited by an International Criminal Court arrest warrant issued in 2023 that has prompted him to avoid visits to places that recognize the court’s authority. The U.S. isn’t a member of the court and thus doesn’t have an obligation to arrest him.

The trip to Alaska will be Putin’s first to the United States since 2015, when he attended the U.N. General Assembly

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