Russia

The defeat of the Russian Empire in World War I led to the seizure of power by the communists and the formation of the USSR. The brutal rule of Josef STALIN (1924-53) strengthened Russian dominance of the Soviet Union at a cost of tens of millions of lives. The Soviet economy and society stagnated in the following decades until General Secretary Mikhail GORBACHEV (1985-91) introduced glasnost (openness) and perestroika (restructuring) in an attempt to modernize communism, but his initiatives inadvertently released forces that by December 1991 splintered the USSR into 15 independent republics. Since then, Russia has struggled in its efforts to build a democratic political system and market economy to replace the strict social, political, and economic controls of the communist period. A determined guerrilla conflict still plagues Russia in Chechnya.
(Source: CIA - The World Factbook)

border countries:
Azerbaijan, Belarus, China, Estonia, Finland, Georgia, Kazakhstan, North Korea, Latvia, Lithuania, Mongolia, Norway, Poland, Ukraine

Official Name:
Rossiyskaya Federatsiya
short form: Rossiya
int'l long form: Russian Federation
int'l short form: Russia
former: Russian Empire, Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic local

ISO Country Code: ru
Moscow, Saint-Peterburg:
Sat-Oct-22 20:24
Local Time = UTC +3h
Sat-Oct-22 23:24
Local Time = UTC +6h
Daylight Saving Time (DST) March - October

Country Calling Code: +7

Capital City: Moscow (pop. 8.3 million)

Other Cities:
St. Petersburg (4.6 million), Novosibirsk (1.4 million), Nizhniy Novgorod (1.3 million)

Government:
Federation.
Independence: August 24, 1991.

Geography:
Location: Northern Asia (that part west of the Urals is included with Europe), bordering the Arctic Ocean, between Europe and the North Pacific Ocean.
Area: 17 million sq. km. (6.5 million sq. mi.); about 1.8 times the size of the United States.
Terrain: Broad plain with low hills west of Urals; vast coniferous forest and tundra in Siberia; uplands and mountains (Caucasus range) along southern borders.

Climate: Northern continental, from subarctic to subtropical.

People:
Nationality: Russian(s).
Population : 150 million.
Ethnic groups: Russian 81%, Tatar 4%, Ukrainian 3%, other 12%.
Religion: Russian Orthodox, Islam, Judaism, Roman Catholicism, Protestant, Buddhist, other.
Language: Russian (official); more than 140 other languages and dialects.
Literacy: 98%.

Natural resources: Petroleum, natural gas, timber, furs, precious and nonferrous metals.

Agriculture products: Grain, sugar beets, sunflower seed, vegetables, fruits; beef, milk.

Industries: Complete range of mining and extractive industries producing coal, oil, gas, chemicals, and metals; all forms of machine building from rolling mills to high-performance aircraft and space vehicles; shipbuilding; road and rail transportation equipment; communications equipment; agricultural machinery, tractors, and construction equipment; electric power generating and transmitting equipment; medical and scientific instruments; consumer durables, textiles, foodstuffs, handicrafts.

Exports partners: Germany 7.8%, Netherlands 6.5%, Italy 6.3%, China 6.2%, Belarus 5.7%, Ukraine 5.7%, USA 4.6%, Switzerland 4.4% (2003)

Imports partners: Germany 14%, Belarus 8.6%, Ukraine 7.7%, China 5.8%, USA 5.2%, Kazakhstan 4.7%, Italy 4.2%, France 4.1% (2003)

Currency: Russian Ruble (RUR)