President Trump gifts icon to Russian Orthodox monastery

Strelna, Leningrad Province, Russia, June 4, 2026

Photo: TASS Photo: TASS     

A copy of the Sitka Icon of the Mother of God was gifted to a Russian Orthodox monastery in Strelna near St. Petersburg at the suggestion of President Trump on Tuesday.

The gift was delivered to the Holy Trinity-St. Sergius Monastery by Rodney Mims Cook, Chairman of the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts, reports TASS.

Cook explained that Pres. Trump proposed the gift after Russian President Vladimir Putin gave an icon to an Orthodox church in Alaska.

“I was deeply moved by President Putin’s visit to Alaska. He presented an icon of St. Herman to the Orthodox Church in Alaska. President Trump suggested to me that I return that gesture here,” Cook said.

Cook traveled to St. Petersburg to take part in the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum 2026. Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov previously said Cook would speak at the “Russia and the United States: Dialogue of Cultures” session.

During a visit to Alaska in August 2025, Pres. Putin gave two Orthodox icons to His Eminence Archbishop Alexei of Sitka and Alaska.

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6/4/2026

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