Russia and the United States maintain one of the most important, critical and strategic foreign relations in the world. Both nations have shared interests in nuclear safety and security, nonproliferation, counterterrorism, and space exploration. Due to the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, relations became very tense after the United States imposed sanctions against Russia. Russia placed the United States on a list of "unfriendly countries", along with Taiwan, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, European Union members, NATO members (except Turkey), Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Norway, Switzerland, Micronesia and Ukraine.
After the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, the relationship was generally warm under the Russian President Boris Yeltsin (1991–99). In the early years of Yeltsin's presidency, the US and Russia established a cooperative relationship and worked closely together to address global issues such as arms control, counterterrorism, and the conflict in Bosnia. During Yeltsin's second term, US-Russia relations became more strained. The NATO intervention in Yugoslavia, in particular the 1999 NATO intervention in Kosovo was strongly opposed by Yeltsin, who, although the Soviet Union had been strongly opposed by the Titovian flavour of independence, saw it as an infringement on Russia's latter-day sphere of influence. Yeltsin also criticized NATO's expansion into Eastern Europe, which he saw as a threat to Russia's security.
After Vladimir Putin became President of Russia in 2000, he initially sought to improve relations with the United States. The two countries cooperated on issues such as counterterrorism and arms control. Putin worked closely with US President George W. Bush on the war in Afghanistan following the 9/11 attacks. Tensions began to rise as Putin became more authoritarian, and the US pursued policies that Russia viewed as threatening to its security. The US supported the pro-Western government in Georgia, which led to the Russo-Georgian War.
Another source of tension was the US missile defense system. Following Putin regaining control of the Russian government in 2012, relations between the two countries significantly strained due to Russia's annexation of Crimea and Russian military intervention in Ukraine. Deterioration continued with the Russian military intervention in the Syrian Civil War, and over Russia's interference in the 2016 and 2020 U.S. elections.
Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, relations reached the lowest point since the Cuban Missile Crisis. Western sanctions imposed since 2014 were significantly expanded by the U.S. and its allies following the invasion, including several state-owned banks and oligarchs.
Background
United States and the Russian Empire
Official contacts between the Russian Empire and the new United States of America began in 1776. Russia, while formally neutral during the American Revolution (1765–1783), favored the U.S.
There was little trade or migration before the late 19th century. Formal diplomatic ties were established in 1809. During the American Civil War, Russia supported the Union, largely because it believed that the U.S. served as a counterbalance to its geopolitical rival, the United Kingdom. In 1863, the Russian Navy's Baltic and Pacific fleets wintered in the American ports of New York and San Francisco, respectively.
Russia operated a small fur-trade operations in Alaska, coupled with missionaries to the natives. By 1861, the project had lost money, threatened to antagonize the Americans, and could not be defended from Britain. It proved practically impossible to entice Russians to permanently migrate to Alaska; only a few hundred were there in 1867. In the Alaska Purchase of 1867, the land was sold to the United States for $7.2 million.
The Russian administrators and military left Alaska, but some missionaries stayed on to minister to the many natives who converted to the Russian Orthodox faith.
After 1880, repeated anti-Jewish pogroms in Russia alienated American elite and public opinion. In 1903, the Kishinev pogrom killed 47 Jews, injured 400, and left 10,000 homeless and dependent on relief. American Jews began large-scale organized financial help and assisted in emigration.
The Treaty of Portsmouth (1905), brokered by American President Theodore Roosevelt ended the Russo-Japanese War.