Two Russians fleeing military service flee on a BOAT to the remote island of Alaska in the Bering Sea where they have applied for asylum
- The two Russians fled from a coastal town on a boat to Gambell, an isolated community on St. Lawrence Island in the Bering Strait.
- Alaska Senators Murkowski and Dan Sullivan said the individuals had landed on a beach near Gambell and were alerted to the incident on Tuesday.
- It is unclear when the two fled or when they arrived on the island
- Gambell is located approximately 200 miles southwest of Alaska’s western hub community of Nome and approximately 56 miles from the Chukotka Peninsula, Siberia
Two Russians who said they fled the country to avoid military service are said to have applied for asylum in the US after landing on a remote Alaskan island in the Bering Sea.
Karina Borger, a spokesperson for Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski, said her office has been in contact with the U.S. Coast Guard and Customs and Border Protection and that “Russian citizens reported fleeing from one of the coastal communities on Russia’s east coast.” . to avoid conscription’.
Alaska Senators Republicans Murkowski and Dan Sullivan said the individuals landed on a beach near Gambell, an isolated community of about 600 people on St Lawrence Island.
Two Russians who said they fled the country to avoid compulsory military service are said to have applied for asylum in the US after landing on a remote Alaskan island, St. Lawrence Island, in the Bering Sea
The statement does not specify when the incident took place, although Sullivan said he was notified by a “senior community leader from the Bering Strait region” on Tuesday morning.
A spokesman for Sullivan, Ben Dietderich, said the office understands that the people had arrived by boat.
Gambell is located about 200 miles southwest of Alaska’s western hub community of Nome and about 56 miles from the Chukotka Peninsula, Siberia.
Spokespersons for the Coast Guard and Customs and Border Protection referred a reporter’s questions to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Public Affairs Office, which provided little information on Thursday.
The office said in a statement that the individuals were “transported to Anchorage for inspection, which included a screening and vetting process, and then processed in accordance with applicable U.S. immigration laws under the Immigration and Nationality Act.”