2 Russians flee to remote Alaskan island to escape Vladimir Putin’s Ukraine war draft
- The pair are seeking asylum in the US after sailing across the Bering Sea in a small boat and arriving near Gambell, an isolated town of 600 people
- The route is an unusual one for Russians attempting to get into the US, who more commonly enter via Mexico or Canada
Two Russians who said they fled the country to avoid compulsory military service have requested asylum in the US after landing on a remote Alaska island in the Bering Sea, Alaska US Senator Lisa Murkowski’s office said on Thursday.
Karina Borger, a Murkowski spokeswoman, said by email that the office has been in communication with the US Coast Guard and Customs and Border Protection and that “the Russian nationals reported that they fled one of the coastal communities on the east coast of Russia to avoid compulsory military service”.
Spokespersons with the Coast Guard and Customs and Border Protection referred a reporter’s questions to the US Department of Homeland Security public affairs office, which provided little information on Thursday.
The office, in a statement, said the individuals “were transported to Anchorage for inspection, which includes a screening and vetting process, and then subsequently processed in accordance with applicable US immigration laws under the Immigration and Nationality Act”.
01:32
Putin admits to mobilisation mistakes after reports of sick, old men being drafted
The agency said the individuals arrived on Tuesday on a small boat. It did not provide details on where the individuals came from, their journey or the asylum request.
Alaska’s senators, Republicans Murkowski and Dan Sullivan, said on Thursday that the individuals landed at a beach near the town of Gambell, an isolated community of about 600 people on St Lawrence Island. Sullivan said he was alerted to the matter by a “senior community leader from the Bering Strait region” on Tuesday morning.
Gambell is about 320km (200 miles) southwest of the western Alaska hub community of Nome and about 58km from the Chukotka Peninsula, Siberia, according to a community profile on a state website.
A person who responded to an email address listed for Gambell directed questions to federal authorities.
Sullivan, in a statement, said he has encouraged federal authorities to have a plan in place in case “more Russians flee to Bering Strait communities in Alaska”.
“This incident makes two things clear: first, the Russian people don’t want to fight Putin’s war of aggression against Ukraine,” Sullivan said. “Second, given Alaska’s proximity to Russia, our state has a vital role to play in securing America’s national security.”
Murkowski said the situation underscored “the need for a stronger security posture in America’s Arctic”.
Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy on Wednesday, as initial details of the situation were emerging, said he did not expect a continual stream or “flotilla” of individuals traversing the same route. He also warned that travel in the region could be dangerous as a fall storm packing strong winds was expected.
03:15
Flocks of Russians flee to avoid draft orders, while those who stay receive blessings
It is seemingly unusual for someone to take this route to try to get into the US.
US authorities in August stopped Russians without legal status 42 times who tried to enter the US from Canada. That was up from 15 times in July and nine times in August 2021.
Russians more commonly try to enter the US through Mexico, which does not require visas. Russians typically fly from Moscow to Cancun or Mexico City, entering Mexico as tourists before getting a connecting a flight to the US border. Earlier this year, US authorities contended with a spate of Russians who hoped to claim asylum if they reached an inspection booth at an official crossing.
Some trace the spike to before Russia invaded Ukraine, attributing it to the imprisonment of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny last year. US authorities on the Mexican border stopped Russians 20,608 times from September through August, five times the previous 12-month-period.
