Chukotka Autonomous Okrug

Chukotka (Чуко́тка) in the Russian Far East is the farthest northeast region of Russia, on the shores of the Bering Sea. The region has an area of 284,000 square miles (719,821 km²) and a population of about 53,000 (according to 2002 census figures). The principal town and regional capital is Anadyr. It was formerly an autonomous region subsumed within Magadan Oblast, but it declared independence from Magadan in 1991, a move that was confirmed by the Russian Constitutional Court in 1993.

Traditionally the home of the native Chukchi people, Siberian Yup'iks, Koryaks, Chuvans, Evens/Lamuts, Yukagirs, and Russian Old Settlers, the region was subject to collectivisation and forced settlement during the Soviet era.

Chukotka has large reserves of oil, natural gas, coal, gold and tungsten, which are slowly being exploited, but much of the rural population exists on subsistence reindeer herding, hunting and fishing. The urban population is employed in mining, administration, construction, cultural work, education, medicine, and other occupations.

The governor of Chukotka, oligarch Roman Abramovich, has spent millions of dollars in the region on developing infrastructure and providing direct aid to the inhabitants.