Zhenbao Island


Zhenbao Island or Damansky Island is a small island measuring. It is located on the Ussuri River on the border between Primorsky Krai of Russia and Heilongjiang province, People's Republic of China.
Prior to 1991, the island was part of Russia. It got its Russian name from railway engineer Stanislav Damansky who died here in an incident in 1888 while charting the future route for Trans-Siberian railway.

Conflict over the island between USSR & China

It was the subject of a territorial dispute between the Soviet Union and the PRC. Battles were fought over Zhenbao Island by the Soviet Union and the PRC, with a considerable loss of life, during the Sino-Soviet border conflict of March 1969. The conflict over Zhenbao raised concerns that it could ignite another World War until an initial resolution of the conflict in November 1969.
On 19 May 1991, the two sides came to an agreement that Zhenbao Island was part of the territory of the PRC; the Soviet troops withdrew.
A 2004 Russian documentary film, Damansky Island Year 1969., was made about the 1969 Zhenbao incident.

Nature Reserve

It has been registered as a Ramsar site Heilongjiang Zhenbaodao Wetland National Nature Reserve, protecting its biodiversity in a consequence of a creation of a involuntary park. It is an important habitat for variety of smaller to mid-sized mammals and birds such as siberian roe deer, snow hare, wild boar, black bear, leopard cat, weasel, squirrel, European badger, ring-necked pheasant, and white spoonbill. There have been sightings of siberian tigers.