The Diomede Islands are a group of two rocky islands located in the waters of the Bering Strait. The archipelago consists of Big Diomede and Little Diomede, which are separated by a 3.8-kilometer stretch of water.
In terms of sovereignty, Big Diomede falls under the jurisdiction of the Russian Federation, while Little Diomede is part of the territorial waters of the United States. Between the two islands lies the official border of both nations, as well as the International Date Line.
The line creates a time difference of up to 21 hours between the two islands. During the summer, the time difference drops to 20 hours as Alaska adjusts its time zone. The difference means that Big Diomede is always one day ahead of Little Diomede.
Despite their temporal divide, both islands share a history linked to their distinct populations.
Big Diomede, Where the Population Was Forcibly Relocated by the Soviets
Big Diomede has an area of 29 square kilometers. Among Russians, the island is known as Ostrov Ratmanova. The island is recorded as the easternmost point of the entire sovereign territory of the Russian Federation. Within the government administrative hierarchy, it falls under the jurisdiction of the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug.
Before the island's borderlines were drawn, Big Diomede was once inhabited by the indigenous Inupiat people. The residents on the island shared close kinship ties with the settlers on Little Diomede and regularly crossed the sea to interact with one another.
However, the Soviet Government relocated the entire Inupiat population from Big Diomede to the Chukotka mainland in 1948. The step was taken during the Cold War to clear the border zone directly facing the United States. It was also intended to transform the island into a closed military area.
Since then, the old settlement on Big Diomede has been completely abandoned. The island now functions solely as a Russian border guard post and an Arctic weather observation station.
Little Diomede, Home to a Surviving Inupiat Settlement
Meanwhile, Little Diomede became part of the United States when the US government purchased Alaska from the Russian Empire in 1867. The purchase treaty drew the international border right through the water gap between the two islands.
Little Diomede land area spans approximately 7.3 square kilometers and is currently administered by the State of Alaska.
When the Soviet Union cleared Big Diomede in 1948, the United States allowed the indigenous population on Little Diomede to remain on their ancestral land. They stayed on Little Diomede and formed a single settlement known as the City of Diomede. The decision permanently separated families that had connected the two islands for generations.
The border dividing Big Diomede and Little Diomede has its own nickname: the Ice Curtain. The term emerged during the Cold War as a play on the Iron Curtain, which divided the Western and Eastern Blocs.
Before the Cold War, indigenous people from both islands could cross the sea to visit one another and trade goods. However, the border across the Bering Strait was closed and strictly patrolled by Soviet and American authorities during the Cold War. It later halted all maritime access and civil aviation with Big Diomede.
That level of control hasn't relaxed in the modern era. In 2012, Russia designated its Bering Strait coast as a closed military zone. Entry requires special permits issued through official hubs like Anadyr or Provideniya. Unauthorized crossings lead straight to arrest and deportation.
