Yakutia

Washed by the Laptev Sea and the East Siberian Sea, Yakutia (Sakha Republic) lies in the north-east of Siberia. More than one third of its territory is inside the Arctic Circle. Most of the republic is occupied by wide mountainous ranges, plateaux and tableland rich in diamonds, gold, tin, mica, tungsten, coal and natural gas. The Lena and Kolyma are the two largest rivers in Yakutia. The region has over seven hundred lakes. The Arctic fox, sable, ermine, fox, reindeer, elk, Ross’s gull and Siberian crane live in Yakutia. The capital of the Sakha Republic is Yakutsk, which lies on the left bank of the River Lena. The town is home to the country’s only permafrost research institute.