The Russian Empire officially recognized the United States of America in 1803. However, Russia had established trade relations with the Thirteen Colonies well before they issued the United States Declaration of Independence in 1776. This commerce, which violated the Navigation Acts of the British Empire, continued to take place during the American Revolution. Although Russian empress Catherine the Great decided against openly endorsing either side during the American Revolutionary War, she did hold the view that it was the "personal fault" of British policy and also believed that secession among British colonies in the Americas could be "advantageous" to her realm. Russia's position on the United States, therefore, largely facilitated France's pro-American position and contributed to the British defeat in 1783.
Diplomats were first exchanged between Saint Petersburg and Washington, D.C., in 1809. During the American Civil War, Russia openly supported the Union and while it refrained from entering the conflict as a belligerent, the Imperial Russian Navy maintained a presence in American ports as a show of force against the Confederacy. In 1867, the Alaska Purchase resulted in the American acquisition of Alaska, which had previously been a Russian colony in North America. Following the collapse of the Russian Empire in 1917 (the year of American entry into World War I), the United States supported the White movement until 1920. However, the Allied effort to support the White movement was ultimately unsuccessful, as the Russian Civil War ended with the establishment of the Soviet Union.