Borderland - E3/8 - The Backyard

In this series Jelle Brandt Corstius explores the border countries between Russia and Europe, from Latvia to Moldavia, West and East Ukraine, Belarus and Kazakhstan. What is the picture that the Russians and their neighbours have of each other, how are the relationships between powerful Russia and the other former Soviet republics? And how do the surrounding countries treat their Russian inhabitants? A series about propaganda and identity.

Episode 3: The Backyard

Kazakhstan is a country the size of western Europe, and yet very few people have heard of it. We visit the city of Semipalatinsk, with its sad legacy from the Soviet days: a total of 456 atomic bombs were detonated here. The locals still have health problems. The inheritance of a Soviet Union that some people fear will return.

© VPRO September 2015

This channel offers some of the best travel series from the Dutch broadcaster VPRO. Our series explore cultures from all over the world. VPRO storytellers have lived abroad for years with an open mind and endless curiosity, allowing them to become one with their new country. Thanks to these qualities, they are the perfect guides to let you experience a place and culture through the eyes of a local. Uncovering the soul of a country, through an intrinsic and honest connection, is what VPRO and its presenters do best.

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more information at www.vprobroadcast.com

Visit additional youtube channels bij vpro broadcast:
vpro Broadcast:    / @vprobroadcast  
vpro Metropolis:    / @metropolishuman  
vpro Documentary:    / @vprodocumentary  
vpro Extra:    / @vproextra3443  
vpro VG (world music):    / @vrijegeluiden  
vpro 3voor12 (alternative music):    / @3voor12  
vpro 3voor12 extra (music stories):    / @3v12radio  

Director: Alexander Oey and Jelle Brandt Corstius
English, French and Spanish subtitles by Ericsson and co-funded by the European Union.