Russian President Vladimir Putin visited Fort Richardson National Cemetery in Anchorage, Alaska, on 15 August, immediately after concluding a summit with U.S. President Donald Trump. Putin laid a bouquet of flowers, knelt and made the Orthodox sign of the cross at the graves of Soviet pilots and sailors who died while ferrying Lend-Lease aircraft and equipment from the United States to the Soviet Union during World War II. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the gesture was intended to underscore the shared wartime history that once bound the two nations. Putin thanked the United States for maintaining the site, which commemorates the thousands of flights that traversed the so-called Alaska–Siberia air route, and called Alaska “a common heritage of courage and sacrifice” at a joint press conference earlier in the day. The visit followed a highly choreographed arrival that sparked domestic criticism after images circulated of U.S. soldiers kneeling to roll out a red carpet for the Russian leader. California Governor Gavin Newsom labeled the scene “disgusting,” highlighting the political sensitivity surrounding the first face-to-face meeting between Trump and Putin since Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine.