A Tibetan student in Russia raised the national flag of Tibet on the western summit of Mt Elbrus at the height of 5642 meters. Tenzin Thinley who is currently in his final year of obtaining MBBS, MD degree at the Orenburg State Medical University had embarked on this high-risk mission on 3 August at around 12:30 local time.

Mount Elbrus is the highest and most prominent peak in Russia and Europe. It is situated in the western part of the Caucasus and is the highest peak of the Caucasus Mountains. Mount Elbrus is situated in the northwest of the Caucasus, 100 kilometers from the Black Sea and 370 kilometers from the Caspian Sea, from where it is possible to see it in exceptionally clear weather. It rises 5,642 meters above sea level and is the highest point of the Caucasus Mountains. Located eleven kilometers north of the Greater Caucasus Watershed, marking the border with Georgia,it is shared between the respective territories of the Russian republics of Kabardino-Balkaria and Karachay-Cherkessia. It is the highest peak in both Russia and Europe, far ahead of Mont Blanc in the Alps, which rises 4,809 meters above sea level.

“The acclimatization took about a week before reaching the peak of Mount Elbrus. I reached the peak on August 3rd at 12:30 and along the journey, I had carried the Tibetan Flag with me with the intention to hoist our national flag of Tibet and to represent the six million Tibetans on the expedition” said Tenzin Thinley.

He also stated that before leaving the country which has been his home for the last few years where he had made so many friends and shared information and facts about Tibet, he wanted to raise the flag as a symbol of his contributions to the Tibet’s struggle for justice, human rights, and preservation of the unique Tibetan heritage.