- ‘Putin’s Militant Buryats’ and the Ukraine War: Myths and Facts (blogs.lse.ac.uk)
Buryatia is a sparsely populated region in the Far East of Russia, sharing its southern border with Mongolia. Normally away from the spotlight, Buryatia received vast media attention in the wake of the 24 February 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, when military units based in Buryatia played a significant role in the assault on Ukraine’s Kyiv and Zaporizhzhia regions; they accounted for a notable portion of Russia’s war death toll. Moreover, immediately after the de-occupation of the Kyiv region in April 2022, the mass murder of Ukrainian civilians in the city of Bucha was blamed on troops from Buryatia, attracting even more negative attention to the region and its Indigenous population. The ‘Putin’s militant Buryats’ meme, dating back to the 2015 Donbas war, took on a new, even more sinister meaning.
- Buryatia (Wikipedia)
Buryatia, officially the Republic of Buryatia, is a republic of Russia located in the Russian Far East. Formerly part of the Siberian Federal District, it has been administered as part of the Far Eastern Federal District since 2018. To its north lie Irkutsk Oblast and Lake Baikal, the deepest lake in the world; Zabaykalsky Krai to the east; Tuva to the west and Mongolia to the south. Its capital is the city of Ulan-Ude. It has an area of 351,300 square kilometers (135,600 sq mi) with a population of 978,588 (2021 Census). It is home to the indigenous Buryats.
- Buryatia (Wikivoyage)
Buryatia (Russian: Бур́ятия boor-YAH-tee-yuh) is a republic in Eastern Siberia. Aside from its cultural attractions and capital, Buryatia is a nature lover’s paradise. Almost 80% of the territory is covered by mountains, and more than half the shore-line of Lake Baikal falls under Buryatia’s jurisdiction. Outside the capital Ulan Ude, the major tourist attractions include hot springs, Lake Baikal and Mongolian-style Buddhist monasteries.
