Astrakhan Khanate
Upon arrival to the lower Volga region in 1630, the Oirats encamped on land that was once part of the Astrakhan Khanate, but was then claimed by the Tsarist government. The region was lightly populated, from south of Saratov to the Russian garrison at Astrakhan, and on both the east and the west banks of the Volga River. The Tsarist government was not ready to colonize the area and was in no position to prevent the Oirats from encamping in the region, but it had a direct political interest in ensuring that the Oirats would not become allied with their Turkic-speaking neighbors.