FORMATION OF BORDERS BETWEEN RUSSIA, GREAT BRITAIN, AND THE USA IN THE NORTH PACIFIC OCEAN AT THE END OF THE 18TH –FIRST QUARTER OF THE 19TH CENTURIES

The article is devoted to the history of border formation in the North Pacific Ocean from the end of the 18th to the first quarter of the 19th centuries. This period is characterized by the struggle between great powers for control of territories in North America. The main rivals were Russia, Spain, and Great Britain. In 1799, Russia unilaterally announced its claims. Great Britain and Spain were unable to object due to preoccupation with European affairs. The following decades saw a significant weakening of Spain as a colonial power. Revolutions began in its colonies, leading to the formation of independent states, including Mexico. Russia was unable to fully exploit the resulting situation. Meanwhile, Spain was replaced by the United States of America. American citizens began to actively engage in trade and entrepreneurship in the North Pacific. In the early 1820s, a new round of confrontation occurred, this time between Russia, Great Britain, and the USA. Russia was again first to assert its claims, announcing the expansion of its possessions southward. This time, rivals responded: Russian-American and Anglo-Russian negotiations commenced. The Russian government was forced to make concessions. Consequently, conventions definitively establishing the boundaries of the powers' possessions in the region were concluded in 1824 and 1825 between Russia, Great Britain, and the United States.