The current boundary dispute arises from two sources. First, when the United States acquired much of Alaska from Russia in 1867, no boundary line was established since no land areas of Russia and the United States touched each other. Secondly, additional islands in the Arctic were added to Alaska in 1881, including Wrangell, Bennett, Jeannette, and Henrietta. Equal in size to Rhode Island and Delaware combined, Wrangell was discovered by the U.S. Revenue Marine ship Corwin commanded by Captain Calvin Leighton Hooper, whose landing party included the famed naturalist John Muir. The other three islands were discovered by the U.S. Navy expedition aboard USS Jeannette commanded by Lt. George Washington DeLong and the island group still bears the name of DeLong Islands. These additions to the United States were reflected in official territorial records, and much American activity was conducted in and around them. In 1924, Soviet Forces invaded Wrangell Island and interned the American inhabitants. The United States has never relinquished sovereignty over these islands to the Russians.

These areas became more valuable in 1976 when international law established the 200 nautical mile fishery conservation zones from every country's coasts. In 1983 the exclusive economic zones (EEZ) were added that gave countries the rights to seabeds and below. Thus any small island would have 125,000 square miles of ocean resources inside its 100 nautical mile radius. The disputed seabeds in the Arctic and Bering Sea amount to an area the size of Texas.

Because the U.S. and the former Soviet Union were within 400 nautical miles, it became necessary to negotiate a maritime boundary extending over 1200 miles. The U.S. and the former Soviet Union started boundary discussions in the late 1970's, but never invited the State of Alaska to participate in any negotiations despite the fact that the potential maritime boundaries would significantly affect Alaska's territorial, sovereignty, and property rights. The public and the U.S. Congress were also excluded from any knowledge or input. The negotiations extended over 10 years, consisting mostly of disagreements about how to draw a 1000-mile diagonal line from the Bering Strait to the end of the Aleutian Islands.

In 1990, an executive agreement was reached between the U.S. State Department and the Soviet Foreign Ministry on a maritime boundary, and at the same time a proposed treaty was signed with the same provisions. This proposed treaty has never been ratified by the Russians and thus is not in force. The Russians are now demanding that the maritime boundary be moved even closer to Alaska so that it can get another 300 million pounds of fish per year from the American side and the State Department seems ready to concede to it.

The maritime boundary between Alaska and Russia thus remains unresolved, as does the status of the islands in the Arctic Ocean and at the end of the Aleutians. Under Constitutional principles, Alaska has the right to participate in any negotiations that affect its territory, sovereignty, or property, and consent to the terms of any agreement. California has passed resolves supporting Alaska's rights in this matter, and Idaho is anticipating passing a resolve on our behalf. The Governor and Alaska State Legislature cannot continue to stand by and allow the United States government to encroach any more on its states rights and valuable economic resources.