Founded by President Eisenhower in 1956, the nonprofit Sister Cities International organization promotes cultural ties, business and trade, youth and education, peace and goodwill, via a network of 5,000 global connections in 140 countries.
Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan sent a letter to Leningrad officially ending the state’s sister city relationship after nearly 30 years. Speaking to reporters, he said it was a “symbolic” gesture in support of Ukraine.
The governor is not alone in that sentiment as other American cities move to assess their own longstanding cultural ties to Russian cities via Sister Cities International.
In Chicago, home to the Midwest’s largest Ukrainian American population, Mayor Lori Lightfoot suspended the city’s 25-year sister city relationship with Moscow. Charlotte, North Carolina, moved to end its 31-year relationship with the Russian city of Voronezh. The governor of Virginia has asked that Norfolk and Roanoke sever relationships with Kaliningrad and Pskov, respectively. Sarasota, Florida is reconsidering its symbolic twinning with Vladimir in Russia.
In Vermont, Gov. Scott rescinded a 1990 agreement that established a sister-state relationship between with Karelia, a member of the Russian Federation. He asked all municipalities to suspend sister city/town relationships with Russian entities.
Alternatively, in St. Petersburg, Florida, Mayor Ken Welch indicated that the city supports Ukraine but maintains its sister city relationship with St. Petersburg, Russia. In Tacoma, Washington, there’s no push for a breakup with Vladivostok at the moment.
Additional Sister City relationships between U.S. and Russian cities:
- Portland, ME – Arkhangelsk
- Pembroke Pines, FL – Astrakhan
- Flagstaff, NM – Barnaul
- Beaverton, OR – Birobidzhan
- Columbia, SC – Chelyabinsk
- Montclair, NJ – Cherepovets
- Yakima, WA – Derbent
- Eugene, OR – Irkutsk
- Salt Lake City, UT – Ivhevsk
- Portland, OR – Khabarovsk
- Durham, NC – Kostroma
- Waterville, ME – Kotlas
- Tallahassee, FL – Krasnodar
- Oneonta, NY – Krasnoyarsk
- Annapolis, MD – Kronstadt
- Anacortes, WA & Framingham, MA – Lomonosov
- Anchorage, AK – Magadan
- Santa Clara County, CA – Moscow
- Jacksonville, FL – Murmansk
- Bellingham, WA & Oakland, CA – Nakhodka
- Philadelphia, PA – Nizhny Novgorod
- Chattanooga, TN – Nizhny Tagil
- Gainesville, FL – Novorossiysk
- Minneapolis & St. Paul, MN – Novosibirsk
- Oak Ridge, TN – Obninsk
- Orlando, FL – Orenburg
- Louisville, KY – Perm
- Duluth, MN – Petrozavodsk
- Bowling Green, OH & Milan, MN – Protvino
- Kalamazoo County, MI & Nassau County, NY & Worcester, MA – Pushkin
- Dubuque, IA – Pyatigorsk
- Los Angeles, CA & Westport, CT – St. Petersburg
- St. Louis, MO – Samara
- Dallas, TX – Saratov
- Richmond, IN – Serpukhov
- Colorado Springs, CO – Smolensk
- Long Beach, CA – Sochi
- Des Moines, IA – Stavropol
- Wyndham, NH – Suzdal
- Los Altos, CA – Syktyvkar
- Flint, MI – Tolyatti
- Albany, NY – Tula
- Buffalo, NY – Tver
- Houston, TX – Tyumen
- Macon, GA & Oklahoma City, OK – Ulyanovsk
- Rochester, NY – Veliky Novgorod
- Asheville, NC – Vladikavkaz
- Bloomington & Normal, IL – Vladimir
- Juneau, AK & San Diego, CA – Vladivostok
- Cleveland, OH – Volgograd
- Cleveland Heights & Shaker Heights, OH – Volzhsky
- Charlotte, NC – Voronezh
- Fairbanks, AK – Yakutsk
- Burlington, VT – Yaroslavl
- San Jose, CA – Yekaterinburg
- Princeton, WV – Yoshkar-Ola
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