OPINION: The beginnings of Alaska-Soviet relations took place in a Sitka living room

Beginning in the mid-1980s, under the rule of the Chairman of the Communist Party of the USSR Mikhail Gorbachev, the world was confronted with a new chapter in international dynamics: the introduction of glasnost (social openness) and perestroika (economic restructuring from a planned and managed economy to a market economy) in the former Soviet Union. These gradual socio-economic changes in the former Soviet Union had a fundamental effect on the way the Soviets perceived the West and, subsequently, vice versa.

In the mid-to-late 1980s, Mikhail Gorbachev’s international popularity was greater than that of “rock stars” around the world; Various peace-seeking organizations and social activists were enthusiastic about the new socio-economic prospects with the Soviets and in the early 1990s, my university courses (i.e. Soviet ethnography and culture, Soviet character in Soviet literature, the way Soviets see the world) have become absolute and somewhat insufficient, with the exception of Russian history and Russian language courses. In fact, most Russian experts and Western Sovietologists found themselves overwhelmed; Social activists and amateur historians suddenly emerged as the new voices in Soviet affairs and history.

During the Cold War (1946–1991), Alaska was the only state in the United States that restricted the travel of Soviet citizens, except for limited scientific or academic exchanges or official visits by Soviet government representatives under the auspices of the International Research Exchange Board (IREX) or the U.S. State Department. Conversely, Siberia and some security-sensitive locations in the Russian Far East were also off-limits to U.S. citizens.

Nevertheless, in April 1986, Genady Gerasimov was one of the first post-World War II Soviet officials to visit Alaska. Gerasimov was a career journalist and editor-in-chief of the Moscow News, one of the largest newspapers in the former Soviet Union, published in dozens of languages ​​and distributed around the world. Like all editors of major newspapers in the former Soviet Union, Gerasimov was closely associated with the Politburo (the main policy-making committee) and senior officials of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union.

Sitka was Genady Gerasimov’s first stop in Alaska. I was then employed as an archaeologist with the Tongass National Forest Service and as an adjunct assistant professor of Russian studies at Islands Community College in Sitka (now the University of Alaska Southeast). Sitka city officials hosted a modest reception in honor of Gerasimov’s visit at the residence of Claudette Bechovec. Claudette Bechovec was a longtime resident of Sitka; she was married to Mr Bechovec – a resistance fighter against Nazi Germany in Yugoslavia during World War II.

At one point, at a rather modest reception, Gerasimov approached me: “Sasha, please ask the organizers to accommodate me in the hotel. I don’t want to cause any inconvenience to kind guests. » I quickly relayed Gerasimov’s concerns to an apparent organizer of the reception. “Oh, no,” he replied. “The Bechovecs are members of the Communist Party and they have a gun. He will be safe with Bechovecs and comfortable on this couch,” he continued, pointing to the sagging couch in the corner of the living room. So I cautiously explained to Gerasimov that his request could not be fulfilled in such a short time.

The next day, Gerasimov continued his trip to Juneau to meet with state officials and several enthusiastic activists who were previously engaged in cultural exchange negotiations with their Soviet counterparts. Incidentally, Gerasimov’s visit to Alaska coincided with the tragic accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant on April 26, 1986. As a result, Gerasimov abruptly returned to his home country.

Shortly after his visit to Alaska, Genady Gerasimov was appointed Mikhail Gorbachev’s foreign affairs spokesperson. In the late 1980s, Genady Gerasimov visited Alaska several times. He loved the people of Alaska and played an important role in improving relations between Alaska and Russia.

Genady Gerasimov’s diplomatic visits to Alaska in the 1980s marked the beginning of relations between the peoples of Alaska and Russia; followed later by extensive development in various social, cultural and economic spheres between two regions. Communication between Alaska and Russia was disrupted by the Russian annexation of the Crimean Peninsula in 2014. Historically, however, Alaska has experienced checkered socio-economic developments, as have relations between Alaska and Russia.

The opinions expressed here are those of the author.

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