President Donald Trump was trolled for his slip of tongue, as he said he will be going to Russia for his meeting with Russian president Vladimir Putin — instead of Alaska where the summit will take place on August 15. “Just imagine if Biden had said this: Trump is going to Alaska on Friday — which has not been part of Russia since 1867, commentator Chris D Jackson said. “Trump admits Alaska is part of Russia. And it’s not clear whether it’s dementia or just his policy,” another social media account wrote. “Guess Alaska’s going back to Russia,” X handle Republicans against Trump wrote. “Wait a second; has the Trump-Putin summit location been rearranged or has the Trump administration just announced they’ve ceded Alaska to Russia?” Kyiv-based analyst Jimmy Rushtom said.Alaska is the northernmost US state, located in the far northwest of North America. It’s separated from the contiguous United States by Canada and bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Pacific Ocean to the south and southwest, and Russia across the Bering Strait to the west. Alaska was part of the Russian Empire from the mid-18th century until 1867. Russia sold it to the United States in what’s called the Alaska Purchase, finalized on March 30, 1867, for $7.2 million.Trump’s former NSA John Bolton commented how it was gracious for Putin to agree to come to Alaska, a former Russian region. On the choice of Alaska, Russian presidential assistant Yuri Ushakov said the location is “quite logical” and that both countries are neighbours, with the Bering Strait dividing them. “It seems quite logical for our delegation simply to fly over the Bering Strait and for such an important and anticipated summit of the leaders of the two countries to be held in Alaska,” he was quoted by the BBC.
