Inside Russia's Poorest Region during War & Sanctions

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Tuva holds the dubious titles of being Russia's poorest and most dangerous region. So, what does the local population have to say about the war in Ukraine and the Western sanctions that keep piling up? Join me as I visit some of Russia's roughest neighborhoods, known as the 'favelas of Siberia,' and speak with people from all walks of life to find out how their standards of living have changed.

[RealReporter]

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[julz]

I was born in Tuva, Kizil in the late 80s and spent my childhood there so I feel like I can add some details here.
First, as it was said, Tuva is sunning place because of its nature: tayga, deserts, steppe, mountains, you name it.
Second, Tuva is culturally rich. This region belong to China until 1922, then it became an independent country called Tanu-Tuva and only in 1946 it was included into USSR officially. Tuva is rich with gold so it was the place where many Russians ran from bolsheviks after the revolution of 1917. My great grandparents were those people who ran from Stalin’s repression into this region, my great grandfather was digging gold as many of other Russians. During the soviet period, the region thrived, there were heaps of production factories and coal mining. The region wasn’t super rich but it was save, nice and comfortable to live in. After the collapse of Soviet Union, a lot of production facilities were closed, people lost jobs.

But the worst thing that happened was nationalistic fight between two different tuvinian groups. Tuvinians are not one nation, they have two different groups which differ in life style (one is more urban oriented, the other one lives in steppes like mongols), language and appearance. So they always fight with each other. And when russians were leaving the region for better work, tuvinians develop this fight into nearly a war. 90s were awful there as many of our family friends were killed. My family had to abandon flats and county houses and just ran to another part of Siberia.
Since 90s things changed, Tuva now is much safer place, where you can enjoy rich culture and beautiful nature.

Thirdly, about the drunk people. As many nothern Asian nations, tuvinians have low tolerance to alcohol. They genetically can’t stand it, becoming completely drunk after 1 glass of beer. They also don’t have a drinking traditions like eating smth in between when you drink. This two factors made a huge impact on society, so yes you may see lots of drunk people in the evenings.

However, Tuva is definitely worth visiting and definitely not as dangerous as people picture it.

[Russoswiss]

Konstantin: Tuva is not particularly large...

Half of European countries: Are we a joke to you?

[gnat]

It sound strange for expats, but there are many people in Russia (specially in Moscow and close to it) who never travel around Russia and still believe that there are no roads, no life further then 1000 km from the capital. I'm from Vladivostok, Far East of Russia. 3 years ago have moved to Sakhalin island - it is even further East, just above Japan. And it is funny to see people's reaction when they arrive to island. Expectations VS reality shows great difference :))) Thanks to Real Reporter for the videos, You show real Russia to the world, breaking western stereotypes.

[uxaines]

Love from Kyrgyz Republic 🇰🇬❤️ my fellow tuvans

[davidcox]

Central Asia and Siberia seem to be an almost forgotten area of the world. Thank you for shining a light on a corner of it for us.

[ThereIsAlwaysaWay]

Very hight quality documentary. Better then BBC, or MSNBC and more honest/less biased. And I bet you don't have the same budget.

[asenciya]

В комментариях иностранцы благодарят за то, что вы открываете для них Россию. Я вот россиянка, но тоже хочу поблагодарить за то, что вы открываете для меня Россию)) Для меня Тыва была страшным местом из длинных тревожных статей, рассказывающих о том, как там всё плохо и беспросветно. Интересно было посмотреть на это место с другой стороны. Лишнее напоминание о том, что люди по сути везде одинаковые и хотят примерно одного и того же: жить, любить, растить детей, радоваться.

[MrAllstar]

The ethnic diversity in Russia is epic, so many small yet deeply interesting nations within it’s borders.

[vissarion]

Hello to our Tuvan sisters and brothers from Yakutia.

[YouShaZyB_not_official]

В белой футболке это Я! УРАААААААААА Я В ЮТУБЕ УРААААА я так долго этого ждал

[jimf]

Dude your production is really like a big channel. If I didn’t meet you through Lars' channel, I would never have thought you’re a simple YouTuber. Love your stuff.

[kotiki]

Меня поражает аскетизм многих народов в нашей России. Конечно, айфоны и прочие прелести жизни - это очень весело и приятно. Но я уважаю людей способных жить в единении с природой. Ни один западник пропагандирующий "зелёную повестку" не смог бы жить так аскетично и экологично как, например, некоторые народы в России.

[romastep]

Российская власть обязана принять меры для изменения в лучшую сторону жизнь в Туве! Это должна быть широкая программа на государственном уровне. Тувинцы такие же россияне, как и всё остальные народы нашей России и имеют право на достойную жизнь. Я русский, но хочу чтобы каждый, даже маленький народ, чувствовал, что Россия - это и его дом.

[finnl]

I've got to be honest, that Siberian Favela looked no worse than some areas in the US. There's parts of Detroit or Chicago's south burbs that look just as run down.

[dayandansurun]

Подписан уже несколько месяцев, горячо ценю каждый ваш выпуск. И вот, как только уехал воевать, вы выпускаете материал по моему региону. В любом случае, спасибо за выпуск!

Боты ВСУ нынче стали какие-то совсем унылые

[Лейла]

Кадры с ребятишками в самое ❤❤❤ сразу детство вспомнилось в самом "опасном" районе Красноярска, в котором мы были самыми счастливыми детьми❤️

[darkrolf]

I love the videos, because whatever you say, I lokk it up everywhere and always comne to the conclusion, that its real. You really keep your promise, thanks.

[LindseyReed]

That was great! When I was a little kid, I collected stamps from "Tannu Tuva". My father had atlases and encyclopedias, but I could not find it on any map (this was in the 1950's). Nice to finally see the real place, that I thought was nearly a myth. Thanks for the video!

[willemdederde]

Very impressive docu! Thanks for honoring the Russian soul on a great way! I wish the family who lost their son Peace in their heart! God Bless them. Thanks for sharing this docu . . regards from the Netherlands.