If the Russians, who were born on the islands of the South Kuril ridge - Iturup, Kunashir, Shikotan and the Habomai group of islands, decide to apply for a US green card, they will be in for a very unpleasant surprise.
According to the rules posted on the website of the US Department of State, they must indicate Japan as their place of birth.
This situation was previously commented on by the Russian Foreign Ministry.
The official Telegram channel of the department published a statement that the States "encourage revanchism" and "question the results of World War II."
And the plenipotentiary of the President of the Russian Federation in the Far Eastern Federal District, Yuri Trutnev, in turn, suggested that the residents of Alaska be considered citizens of the Russian Empire.
RT spoke with the residents of the South Kuriles about what they think about the US position on the issue of the islands' ownership, how they deal with the consequences of the pandemic, and what kind of relations they have with foreign neighbors.
A resident of the largest of the islands, Iturup, Alexei Sakunov is sure that his fellow countrymen are much more concerned about the position of the State Department with the supply of food from the mainland and security measures that, like throughout Russia, operate here due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The Kuril people do not care what the US says about the ownership of the islands.
De jure and de facto, the Kurils are ours, whether the Americans want it or not, ”he explained.
- We, the islanders, have patience in common.
This applies to both climatic difficulties and interaction with each other.
Here, maybe people are a little kinder. "
© Photo from personal archive
According to Sakunov, with the closure of borders and the introduction of restrictions due to the coronavirus, a stream of Russian tourists rushed to the islands.
Compatriots from the mainland were not frightened away either by the frequently changing windy weather, or, as a result, by irregular communication with the mainland and high prices for almost all products.
“It happens that in winter, due to ice, the ship cannot approach the island, and then only supplies by air remain.
The main problem is not the lack of goods, but the prices for them.
Tomatoes at 600 rubles per kilogram, for example.
In summer they are cheaper, but in winter they are just a nightmare, although no one has died of hunger here yet, ”added Alexey Sakunov.
The boom in domestic tourism is also noted by German Vasyukhnik.
He heads the youth council in Kurilsk and leads tour groups around Iturup and other southern islands.
According to him, this year there were especially many Russians from Sakhalin and from the western part of the mainland.
The demand was so high that tourists were faced with a shortage of available hotel rooms.
However, the entrepreneurs quickly found their bearings and have already started building new hotels.
The beginning of spring is the deadline for hotel reservations if a large group is going to come in summer and autumn, says German Vasyukhnik.
He adds that the mass arrival of tourists is expected in winter - for the first time in his memory.
There are several active volcanoes on the islands, but they have not given serious cause for concern in recent years and more often serve as a source of inspiration for photographers and artists.
© Photo from personal archive
“Those who love nature in all its manifestations come here,” adds Vasyukhnik.
- Here, on the islands, there are many different "pictures".
Photographers are just crazy about this.
But we have always had a lot of Russians, foreign tourists here are rather an exception. "
Before the pandemic, the Japanese did indeed visit the Kuriles, Herman continues, but only a few times a year: in the summer, as long as the weather permits, and only in groups - so there is no need to apply for a visa to Russia and create a dangerous precedent from Japan's point of view.
“Otherwise there will be a scandal that some of them recognized the islands as Russian if they get a visa.
And so they themselves choose who will go from them, recruit a group and come on their own ship, - the guide explained.
- They visit the graves of their ancestors here.
There is one ancient pillar in the cemetery, they are looking after it and the earth around it. "
With the advent of the pandemic, this practice has stopped, but it's not just the coronavirus, Vasyukhnik is sure.
“Our cultures are very different.
There is nothing to make us feel like neighbors: there is no trade, cars - and we carry them through Vladivostok, - he explains.
- Our life is built around fishing.
Well, and around tourism lately. "
© Photo from personal archive
Artist Evgeniya Kitral was born and raised on the island of Iturup.
The US position on the ownership of the Kuriles does not bother her.
The girl notes that before the pandemic, the Japanese and the Russians stayed with each other, and American tourists and guests from Europe specially flew to the islands.
The residents of the Kuriles, she explains, have a visa-free regime with Japan, and some locals came there and even lived with Japanese families, and the Japanese settled with the Russians.
“I was born in the Russian city of Kurilsk, and my birth certificate says“ citizen of the Russian Federation ”in Russian.
Why should I somehow relate to the fact that some of the Americans are bad with geography?
- Eugene jokes.
- Unfortunately, in Russia, not everyone knows where we are.
For those who are able to reach us, geography is usually all right. "
Residents of the Kuril Islands, the artist is sure, differ not only from their closest foreign neighbors, but also from other Russians who are accustomed to living on the mainland. “Our weather is different, our velvet season is the end of July, August and the beginning of September. But the main difference is in the perception of time. Here it flows more steadily, while in you, in big cities, both time and people are always rushing somewhere, ”she notes.