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| Russia | Plants and Animal | Back to Top |
Grains are among Russia's most valuable crops, occupying more than 50 % of cropland. Wheat is dominant in most grain-producing areas. Winter wheat is cultivated in the North Caucasus and spring wheat in the Don Basin, in the middle Volga region, and in southwestern Siberia. Although Khrushchev expanded the cultivation of corn for farm animal feed, that crop is only suitable for growth in the North Caucasus, and production levels have remained low compared with other grains. Barley, second to wheat in gross yield, is grown mainly for animal feed and beer production in colder regions as far north as 65° north latitude and well into the highlands of southern Siberia. Production of oats, which once ranked third among Russia's grains, has declined as machines have replaced horses in farming operations.
Animal life is extensive and varied throughout Russia. The tundra, which spans the Arctic and northern Pacific coasts and encompasses Russia’s offshore Arctic islands, is home to polar bears, seals, walruses, arctic foxes, lemmings, reindeer, and arctic hares. Birdlife includes white partridges, snowy owls, gulls, and loons. Geese, swans, and ducks migrate into the region during summer, a time when huge swarms of mosquitoes, gnats, and other insects emerge. South of the tundra, the taiga is a habitat for elks, brown bears, lynx, sables, and a mixture of forest birds, including owls and nightingales. Muskrats and squirrels are now the main source of pelts trapped in the wild. The broad-leaved forests of the Great European and West Siberian plains contain boars, deer, wolves,foxes, and minks. There are also a mixture of birds, snakes, lizards, and tortoises.
| Russia | Communications | Back to Top |
the telephone system has undergone remarkable changes in the 1990s; there are more than 1,000 companies licensed to offer communication services; access to digital lines has improved, particularly in urban centers; Internet and e-mail services are improving; Russia has made progress toward building the telecommunications infrastructure necessary for a market economy; a large demand for main line service remains unsatisfied
domestic: cross-nation digital trunk lines run from Saint Petersburg to Khabarovsk, and from Moscow to Novorossiysk; the telephone systems in 60 regional capitals have modern digital infrastructures; cellular services, both analog and digital, are available in many areas; in rural areas, the telephone services are still outdated, insufficient, and low density
international: Russia is connected internationally by three undersea fiber-optic cables; digital switches in several cities offer more than 50,000 lines for international calls; satellite earth stations offer access to Intelsat, Intersputnik, Eutelsat, Inmarsat, and Orbita systems
| Russia | Culture | Back to Top |
In the course of Russia's thousand-year history, Russian literature has come to occupy a unique place in the culture, politics, and linguistic evolution of the Russian people. In the modern era, literature has been the arena for heated discussion of virtually all aspects of Russian life, including the place that literature itself should occupy in that life. In the process, it has produced a valuable and varied fund of artistic achievement.Until the 18th century, Russian music consisted mainly of church music and folk songs and dances. In the 1700s, Italian, French, and German operas were introduced to Russia, making opera a popular art form among the aristocracy.
Although Russian is the lingua franca of the Russian Federation, Article 26 of the 1993 constitution stipulates that "each person has the right to use his native language and to the free choice of language of communication, education, instruction, and creativity." Article 68 affirms the right of all peoples in the Russian Federation "to retain their mother tongue and to create conditions for its study and development." Although such constitutional provisions often prove meaningless, the non-Slavic tongues of Russia have retained their vitality, and they even have grown more prevalent in some regions. This trend is particularly visible as autonomy of language becomes an valuable symbol of the fight to preserve distinct ethnic identities. In the 1990s, many non-Russian ethnic groups have issued laws or decrees giving their native languages equal status with Russian in their respective regions of the Russian Federation. In the mid-1990s, some 80 % of the non-Slavic nationalities--or 12 % of the population of the Russian Federation--did not speak Russian as their first language.
| Russia | Defence | Back to Top |
Military branches: Ground Forces, Navy, Air Force, Strategic Rocket Forces
Military manpower - military age: 18 years of age
Military manpower - availability: males age 15-49: 38,866,147 (2001 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service: males age 15-49: 30,337,743 (2001 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually: males: 1,242,778 (2001 est.)
| Russia | International Disputes | Back to Top |
dispute over at least two small sections of the boundary with China remains to be settled, contempt 1997 boundary agreement; islands of Etorofu, Kunashiri, and Shikotan and the Habomai group occupied by the Soviet Union in 1945, now administered by Russia, claimed by Japan; Caspian Sea boundaries are not yet determined among Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Turkmenistan; Estonian and Russian negotiators reached a technical border agreement in December 1996, which has not been signed or ratified by Russia as of February 2001; draft treaty delimiting the boundary with Latvia has not been signed; 1997 border agreement with Lithuania not yet ratified; has made no territorial claim in Antarctica (but has reserved the right to do so) and does not recognize the claims of any other nation; Svalbard is the focus of a maritime boundary dispute between Norway and Russia
| Russia | Economy | Back to Top |
The Soviet Union had a planned socialist economy, in which the central government controlled everything from production planning and prices to distribution. The Soviet satellite states in Eastern Europe had planned economies as well. After the breakup of the USSR, Russian reformers were confronted with the daunting task of building a modern capitalist economy while simultaneously striving to create a democratic state based on effective laws and reliable administrative structures. The collapse of Communism in Eastern Europe in the late 1980s and the dissolution of the Soviet Union at the end of 1991 disrupted the close economic relations Russia had previously enjoyed with neighboring Communist states and other Soviet republics. Political turmoil and uncertainty inside the Russian government also contributed to the nation’s economic woes. Compared with most of the former planned economies of Eastern Europe, Russia experienced an unusually severe and protracted drop in officially reported economic output.
In 1992, after the collapse of the union, the government of the Russian Federation implemented a series of radical reforms designed to transform the Russian economy from one that was centrally planned and controlled to one based on free enterprise and market forces. Major components of the reforms included establishing privately owned industrial and commercial ventures, with foreign as well as Russian investment, and privatizing state-owned enterprises. Vouchers were issued to each Russian citizen that were to be used to purchase shares in firms being privatized, which often were sold at auction; in practice, these vouchers often were sold for cash and were accumulated by entrepreneurs. A commodity- and stock-exchange system also was set up.
A decade after the implosion of the Soviet Union in 1991, Russia is still struggling to establish a modern market economy and achieve strong economic growth. In contrast to its trading partners in Central Europe - which were able to overcome the initial production declines that accompanied the launch of market reforms within three to five years - Russia saw its economy contract for five years, as the administrator and legislature dithered over the implementation of many of the basic foundations of a market economy. Russia achieved a slight recovery in 1997, but the government's stubborn budget deficits and the nation's poor business climate made it vulnerable when the global financial crisis swept through in 1998. The economy rebounded in 1999 and 2000, buoyed by the competitive boost from the weak ruble and a surging trade surplus fueled by rising world oil prices. This recovery, along with a renewed government effort in 2000 to advance lagging structural reforms, have raised business and investor confidence over Russia's prospects in its second decade of transition.Russia remains heavily dependent on exports of commodities, particularly oil, natural gas, metals, and timber, which account for over 80% of exports, leaving the nation vulnerable to swings in world prices. Russia's agricultural area remains beset by uncertainty over land ownership rights, which has discouraged needed investment and restructuring. Another threat is negative demographic trends,fueled by low birth rates and a deteriorating health situation - including an alarming rise in AIDS cases - that have contributed to a nearly 2% drop in the population since 1992. Russia's industrial base is increasingly dilapidated and must be replaced or modernized if the nation is to achieve sustainable economic growth. Other problems include widespread corruption, capital flight, and brain drain.
| Russia | Education | Back to Top |
In the Soviet time, education was highly centralized, and indoctrination in Marxist-Leninist theory was a major element of every school's curriculum. The schools' additional ideological function left a legacy in the post-Soviet system that has proved difficult for educators to overcome. In the 1990s, reform programs are aimed at overhauling the Soviet-era pedagogical philosophy and substantially revising curricula. Insufficient funding has frustrated attainment of these goals, and the teaching profession has lost talented individuals because of low pay.
Education in Russia advanced remarkablely during the Soviet time. In 1918 the Soviet government instituted free, compulsory schooling, which enabled most Russians to obtain a good basic education. As a result, Russia has an extremely high literacy rate. More than 99 % of the population over age 15 is literate. Soviet government developed a smaller number of very large facilities, which are insufficient to meet Russia’s education needs. Because of a deficiency of space, students must attend schools in shifts in almost one-third of Russia's schools. The physical condition of the buildings, which was poor during the late Soviet time, has deteriorated further since 1991. Many schools deficiency heating, plumbing, and other basic necessities. Disparities in conditions have widened since 1991, as schools have become increasingly reliant on local support from public and private sponsors. Many schools have specialized, either to attract sponsors or to meet the needs of current sponsors, and reformers have sought to refocus the curriculum around the needs of students.
| Russia | Government | Back to Top |
Government: Democratic, federative form of government under 1993 constitution. separated into administrator, legislative, and judicial branches. President, elected to four-year term, sets basic tone of domestic and foreign policy, represents state at home and abroad. Prime minister appoints Government (cabinet) to administer administrator-branch functions. Forty ministries, state committees, and services; reduction in Government size planned late 1996. Prime minister administers policy according to constitution, laws, and presidential decrees. New Government named August 1996 following presidential election, retaining some key members from previous administration. Boris N. Yeltsin president, first elected 1991. Viktor Chernomyrdin prime minister, reap-pointed August 1996. Parliament, bicameral Federal Assembly, has lower house, State Duma, with 450 members serving four-year terms; last election December 1995. Upper house, Fed-eration Council, has 178 seats (two members representing the administrator and legislative bodies of each of the eighty-nine subnational jurisdictions). Three highest judicial bodies Con-stitutional Court, Supreme Court, and Superior Court of Arbi-tration. Judges appointed by president with confirmation from the Federation Council required. Jurisprudence advancing slowly toward Western standards; jury trials held only in some regions.
Politics: Largest party representation in State Duma by Communist Party of the Russian Federation, Liberal-Democratic Party of Russia, Our Home Is Russia, and Yabloko coalition. More than a dozen other parties have representation in State Duma. Personal connections, personalities retain impact in politics as national parties develop slowly, government figures avoid party affiliation; shifting coalitions typical in State Duma. Seventy-eight nominal independents in State Duma.
Administrative Divisions: Twenty-one autonomous republics, forty-nine oblasts (provinces), six territories (kraya; sing., kray), ten autonomous regions (okruga; sing., okrug), one autono-mous oblast. Cities of Moscow and St. Petersburg with separate status at oblast level.
Foreign Relations: In early 1990s, basically pro-Western, drastic change from Soviet era. Russia cofounded Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) in 1991 and assumed Soviet Union seats in many international organizations. Dependence on foreign assistance greatly increased in 1990s. Beginning in 1993, substantial domestic political pressure mitigated stance toward participation in Western-controlled organizations and treaties, reemphasis of independent national power. So-called Eurasianism assumes unique role in world affairs and primary concerns in Asia rather than Europe. Chechnya crisis and nuclear transactions with Iran bring international criticism, although summits with United States president continue, 1997. Policy toward successor states marked by interest in reinte-gration of CIS countries and well-being of Russians living outside borders of Russian Federation. Expansion of North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) into Central Europe major issue in 1996. Other key issues include improvement of relations with China and insistence on strict interpretation of the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty (ABM Treaty). Member of Council of Europe, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), International Labour Organisation (ILO), International Monetary Fund (IMF), International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol), NATO Partnership for Peace (PfP), United Nations (UN) and its Security Council, and World Bank.
| Russia | History | Back to Top |
Each of the many nationalities of Russia has a separate history and complex origins. The historical origins of the Russian state, are chiefly those of the East Slavs, the ethnic group that evolved into the Russian, Ukrainian, and Belorussian peoples. The major pre-Soviet states of the East Slavs were, in chronological order, medieval Kievan Rus', Muscovy, and the Russian Empire. Three other states--Poland, Lithuania, and the Mongol Empire--also played crucial roles in the historical development of Russia.
In spite of its internal problems, Russia continued to play a major role in international politics. unexpected defeat in the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-05 sparked a revolution in 1905. At that stage, professionals, workers, peasants, minority ethnic groups, and soldiers demanded fundamental reforms. Reluctantly, Nicholas II responded to the first of Russia's revolutions by granting a limited constitution, but he increasingly circumvented its democratic clauses, and autocracy again took command in the last decade of the tsarist state. World War I found Russia unready for combat but full of patriotic zeal. as the government proved incompetent and conditions worsened, war weariness and revolutionary pressures increased, and the defenders of the autocracy grew fewer.
| Russia | Introduction | Back to Top |
Russia, general name for the independent, federal republic in eastern Europe and western and northern Asia officially called the Russian Federation (Russian, Rossiyskaya Federatsiya); historically the term is used to refer to the Russian Empire (862-1917), which covered a much larger area than that of present-day Russia. From 1922 until December 25, 1991, the Russian Federation formed part of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR; or Soviet Union), when it was known formally as the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (RSFSR). The term Russian Federation (or RSFSR), originally applied to the state proclaimed by the Bolsheviks in November 1917 as the territorial successor to the whole of the Russian Empire. It was only on the formation of the Soviet Union in 1922, following the decision by the Bolsheviks to respect the self-determination of the empire's many nations, that the Russian Federation became one of the USSR's 15 constituent republics-albeit the largest and most influential, accounting for more than three quarters of its area and more than half of its population.
Population 147,501,000 (1997 official estimate) Population Density 9 people/sq km (22 people/sq mi) (1997 estimate) Urban/Rural Breakdown 73%Urban 27%Rural Largest Cities Moscow8,660,000 Saint Petersburg4,800,000 Novosibirsk1,380,000 Nizhny Novgorod1,380,000 Yekaterinburg1,280,000 (1996 estimates metropolitan areas) Ethnic Groups 80%Russian 4%Tatars 16%Other including Ukrainians, Chuvash, Bashkir, Belorussians, Mordvin, Germans, Udmurt, Mari, Kazakhs, Jews, Armenians, Chechens, Yakut, and Ossetians Languages Official Language Russian Other Languages many minority languages Religions 24%Russian Orthodox Christianity 76%Other including other Christian denominations, Islam, Buddhism, Judaism
| Russia | Land | Back to Top |
N/A
| Russia | Languages | Back to Top |
The Russian language is the nation’s official language and it is the most commonly spoken in business, government, and education. Ethnic Russians speak their native tongue almost exclusively. At the time of the 1989 census only 4.1 % of ethnic Russians in the Soviet Union could speak one of the nation’s other languages, while people belonging to most other ethnic groups were bilingual. More than 100 languages are spoken in Russia. Some of the ethnic republics have declared official regional languages, but millions of non-Russians have adopted Russian as their mother tongue. Among the most bilingual are the Ingush people, of whom 80 % were proficient in both Ingush and Russian in 1989. The Soviet government helped many smaller ethnic groups develop their own alphabets and vocabularies. The USSR’s educational policies ensured widespread use of the Russian language.
| Russia | Legal | Back to Top |
Legal system: based on civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts vote: 18 years of age; universal administrator branch: chief of state: President Vladimir Vladimirovich PUTIN (acting president since 31 December 1999, president since 7 May 2000) head of government: Premier Mikhail Mikhaylovich KASYANOV (since 7 May 2000); First Deputy Premier Aleksey Leonidovich KUDRIN (since 18 May 2000), Deputy Premiers Aleksey Vasilyevich GORDEYEV (since 20 May 2000), Viktor Borisovich KHRISTENKO (since 31 May 1999), Ilya Iosifovich KLEBANOV (since 31 May 1999), Valentina Ivanovna MATVIYENKO (since 22 September 1998) cabinet: Ministries of the Government or "Government" composed of the premier and his deputies, ministers, and other agency heads; all are appointed by the president note: there is also a Presidential Administration (PA) that provides staff and policy support to the president, drafts presidential decrees, and coordinates policy among government agencies; a Security Council also reports directly to the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a four-year term; election last held 26 March 2000 (next to be held NA 2004); note - no vice president; if the president dies in office, cannot exercise his powers because of ill health, is impeached, or resigns, the premier succeeds him; the premier serves as acting president until a new presidential election is held, which must be within three months; premier appointed by the president with the approval of the Duma election results: Vladimir Vladimirovich PUTIN elected president; % of vote - PUTIN 52.9%, Gennadiy Aadreyevich ZYUGANOV 29.2%, Grigoriy Alekseyevich YAVLINSKIY 5.8% Legislative branch: bicameral Federal Assembly or Federalnoye Sobraniye consists of the Federation Council or Sovet Federatsii (178 seats; as of July 2000, members appointed by the top administrator and legislative officials in each of the 89 federal administrative units - oblasts, krays, republics, autonomous okrugs and oblasts, and the federal cities of Moscow and Saint Petersburg; members serve four-year terms) and the State Duma or Gosudarstvennaya Duma (450 seats; half elected by proportional representation from party lists winning at least 5% of the vote, and half from single-member constituencies; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: State Duma - last held 19 December 1999 (next to be held NA December 2003) election results: State Duma - % of vote received by parties clearing the 5% threshold entitling them to a proportional share of the 225 party list seats - KPRF 24.29%, Unity 23.32%, OVR 13.33%, Union of Right Forces 8.52%, LDPR 5.98%, Yabloko 5.93%; seats by party - KPRF 113, Unity 72, OVR 67, Union of Rightist Forces 29, LDPR 17, Yabloko 21, other 16, independents 106, repeat election required 8, vacant 1 Judicial branch: Constitutional Court; Supreme Court; Superior Court of Arbitration; judges for all courts are appointed for life by the Federation Council on the recommendation of the president
| Russia | Life | Back to Top |
As the Soviet Union became urbanized, families grew more numerous and smaller in average size. Between the censuses of 1959 and 1989, the number of family units increased 41%, from 28.5 million to more than 40 million. Average family size in the Russian Republic declined from 3.4 persons in 1970 to 3.1 in 1989. Already in the late 1970s, more than 80% of urban families had two children or fewer. In 1989 some 87% of the population lived in families, of which about 80% were based on a married couple.
According to the 1994 survey, the dynamics of the average Russian family have changed somewhat. Compared with 1989, about 3% fewer individuals characterized their marriages as in conflict, and 9% fewer called their marriages "egalitarian" in the distribution of authority between the partners. The average distribution of common household tasks was shown to be far from equal, with women performing an average of about 75% of cooking, cleaning, and shopping chores. Between 1989 and 1994, women's expression of dissatisfaction with their family situation increased 13%, while that of men rose only 2%. Women reporting family satisfaction were predominantly young or elderly, with sufficient-to-high incomes and at least a secondary education. According to experts, social and economic crises have caused Russians to rely more heavily than ever on the family as a source of personal satisfaction. But these same crises have caused the standard of living to fall, and they have required that more time be spent at work to keep it from falling further, thus making it harder for families to sustain their most cherished attributes.
| Russia | organization | Back to Top |
APEC, ASEAN (dialogue partner), BIS, BSEC, CBSS, CCC, CE, CERN (observer), CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, ESCAP, G- 8, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAIA (observer), MINURSO, MONUC, NAM (guest), NSG, OAS (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UN Security Council, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOP, UNOMIG, UNTAET, UNTSO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer), ZC
| Russia | People | Back to Top |
The population in what is now the Russian Federation has undergone several major shocks in the twentieth century, including large-scale rural famines in the 1920s and 1930s and the loss of millions of citizens in World War II. According to demographic experts, the early 1990s may be the start of a more gradual but potentially powerful new shift. Beginning in 1992, the population has suffered a net loss that is projected to continue at least through the first decade of the next century. This phenomenon is caused by a combination of economic, political, and ethnographic factors.
Russia’s total population in 2001 was around at 145,470,200, making the nation the sixth most populous, after China, India, the United States, Indonesia, and Brazil. Since the dissolution of the Soviet Union the number of immigrants to Russia has exceeded the number of Russians leaving the nation. the rate of natural increase -the number of births compared to the number of deathshas been negative since 1992. In 2001 the birth rate was 9.3 per 1,000, while the death rate was 13.8 per 1,000.
U.S.S.R., Russia displays the greatest ethnic variety, with censuses recognizing more than 70 distinct nationalities. Many of these are extremely small—in some cases consisting of only a few thousand individuals—and, in addition to Russians, only a handful of groups have more than a million members each: Tatars, Ukrainians, Chuvash, Bashkir, Belarusians, and Mordvins. Russians, the overwhelming majority, constitute about four-fifths of the total. The multiplicity of peoples is reflected in 21 minority republics, and, within the Russian republic, there are 10 autonomous districts and an autonomous region. In most of these divisions, the eponymous nationality
| Russia | Politics | Back to Top |
Agrarian Party [Mikhail Ivanovich LAPSHIN]; Communist Party of the Russian Federation or KPRF [Gennadiy Andreyevich ZYUGANOV]; Fatherland-All Russia or OVR [Yuriy Mikhailovich LUZHKOV]; Liberal Democratic Party of Russia or LDPR [Vladimir Volfovich ZHIRINOVSKIY]; Union of Right Forces [Anatoliy Borisovich CHUBAYS, Yegor Timurovich GAYDAR, Irina Mutsuovna KHAKAMADA, Boris Yefimovich NEMTSOV]; Unity [Sergey Kuzhugetovich SHOYGU]; Yabloko Bloc [Grigoriy Alekseyevich YAVLINSKIY] some 150 political parties, blocs, and movements registered with the Justice Ministry as of the 19 December 1998 deadline to be eligible to participate in the 19 December 1999 Duma elections; of these, 36 political organizations actually qualified to run slates of candidates on the Duma party list ballot, 6 parties cleared the 5% threshold to win a proportional share of the 225 party seats in the Duma, 9 other organizations hold seats in the Duma: Bloc of Nikolayev and Academician Fedorov, Congress of Russian Communities, Movement in Support of the Army, Our Home Is Russia, Party of Pensioners, Power to the People, Russian All-People's Union, Russian Socialist Party, and Spiritual Heritage; primary political blocs include pro-market democrats - (Yabloko Bloc and Union of Right Forces), anti-market and/or ultranationalist (Communist Party of the Russian Federation and Liberal Democratic Party of Russia)
| Russia | Provinces | Back to Top |
49 oblasts (oblastey, singular - oblast), 21 republics* (respublik, singular - respublika), 10 autonomous okrugs**(avtonomnykh okrugov, singular - avtonomnyy okrug), 6 krays*** (krayev, singular - kray), 2 federal cities (singular - gorod)****, and 1 autonomous oblast*****(avtonomnaya oblast'); Adygeya (Maykop)*, Aginskiy Buryatskiy (Aginskoye)**, Altay (Gorno-Altaysk)*, Altayskiy (Barnaul)***, Amurskaya (Blagoveshchensk), Arkhangel'skaya, Astrakhanskaya, Bashkortostan (Ufa)*, Belgorodskaya, Bryanskaya, Buryatiya (Ulan-Ude)*, Chechnya (Groznyy)*, Chelyabinskaya, Chitinskaya, Chukotskiy (Anadyr')**, Chuvashiya (Cheboksary)*, Dagestan (Makhachkala)*, Evenkiyskiy (Tura)**, Ingushetiya (Nazran')*, Irkutskaya, Ivanovskaya, Kabardino-Balkariya (Nal'chik)*, Kaliningradskaya, Kalmykiya (Elista)*, Kaluzhskaya, Kamchatskaya (Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy), Karachayevo-Cherkesiya (Cherkessk)*, Kareliya (Petrozavodsk)*, Kemerovskaya, Khabarovskiy***, Khakasiya (Abakan)*, Khanty-Mansiyskiy (Khanty-Mansiysk)**, Kirovskaya, Komi (Syktyvkar)*, Koryakskiy (Palana)**, Kostromskaya, Krasnodarskiy***, Krasnoyarskiy***, Kurganskaya, Kurskaya, Leningradskaya, Lipetskaya, Magadanskaya, Mariy-El (Yoshkar-Ola)*, Mordoviya (Saransk)*, Moskovskaya, Moskva (Moscow)****, Murmanskaya, Nenetskiy (Nar'yan-Mar)**, Nizhegorodskaya, Novgorodskaya, Novosibirskaya, Omskaya, Orenburgskaya, Orlovskaya (Orel), Penzenskaya, Permskaya, Komi-Permyatskiy (Kudymkar)**, Primorskiy (Vladivostok)***, Pskovskaya, Rostovskaya, Ryazanskaya, Sakha (Yakutsk)*, Sakhalinskaya (Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk), Samarskaya, Sankt-Peterburg (Saint Petersburg)****, Saratovskaya, Severnaya Osetiya-Alaniya [North Ossetia] (Vladikavkaz)*, Smolenskaya, Stavropol'skiy***, Sverdlovskaya (Yekaterinburg), Tambovskaya, Tatarstan (Kazan')*, Taymyrskiy (Dudinka)**, Tomskaya, Tul'skaya, Tverskaya, Tyumenskaya, Tyva (Kyzyl)*, Udmurtiya (Izhevsk)*, Ul'yanovskaya, Ust'-Ordynskiy Buryatskiy (Ust'-Ordynskiy)**, Vladimirskaya, Volgogradskaya, Vologodskaya, Voronezhskaya, Yamalo-Nenetskiy (Salekhard)**, Yaroslavskaya, Yevreyskaya*****; note - when using a place name with an adjectival ending 'skaya' or 'skiy,' the word Oblast' or Avonomnyy Okrug or Kray should be added to the place name The autonomous republics of Chechnya and Ingushetiya were formerly the autonomous republic of Checheno-Ingushetia (the boundary between Chechnya and Ingushetia has yet to be determined); administrative divisions have the same names as their administrative centers (exceptions have the administrative center name following in parentheses)
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| Russia | Time | Back to Top |
| Russia | Currency and General Information | Back to Top |
| Countries Currency Unit | RUR/Unit | Units/RUR | |
| DZD | Algeria Dinars | 0.402000 | 2.48756 |
| USD | United States Dollars | 31.1200 | 0.0321337 |
| ARS | Argentina Pesos | 10.5671 | 0.0946337 |
| AUD | Australia Dollars | 16.6030 | 0.0602302 |
| ATS | Austria Schillings ** | 1.96986 | 0.507651 |
| BSD | Bahamas Dollars | 31.1200 | 0.0321337 |
| BBD | Barbados Dollars | 15.6382 | 0.0639460 |
| BEF | Belgium Francs ** | 0.671936 | 1.48824 |
| BMD | Bermuda Dollars | 31.1200 | 0.0321337 |
| BRL | Brazil Reals | 13.3849 | 0.0747108 |
| GBP | United Kingdom Pounds | 44.3728 | 0.0225363 |
| BGL | Bulgaria Leva | 13.9198 | 0.0718404 |
| CAD | Canada Dollars | 19.5090 | 0.0512585 |
| CLP | Chile Pesos | 0.0474065 | 21.0942 |
| CNY | China Yuan Renminbi | 3.75963 | 0.265983 |
| CYP | Cyprus Pounds | 47.3668 | 0.0211118 |
| CZK | Czech Republic Koruny | 0.877882 | 1.13910 |
| DKK | Denmark Kroner | 3.64870 | 0.274070 |
| XCD | East Caribbean Dollars | 11.5259 | 0.0867609 |
| EGP | Egypt Pounds | 6.71775 | 0.148859 |
| EUR | Euro | 27.1058 | 0.0368924 |
| FJD | Fiji Dollars | 13.9239 | 0.0718188 |
| FIM | Finland Markkaa ** | 4.55887 | 0.219352 |
| FRF | France Francs ** | 4.13226 | 0.241998 |
| DEM | Germany Deutsche Marks ** | 13.8590 | 0.0721553 |
| XAU | Gold Ounces | 9,405.88 | 0.000106316 |
| GRD | Greece Drachmae ** | 0.0795476 | 12.5711 |
| HKD | Hong Kong Dollars | 3.98995 | 0.250630 |
| HUF | Hungary Forint | 0.111471 | 8.97093 |
| ISK | Iceland Kronur | 0.311219 | 3.21317 |
| INR | India Rupees | 0.637653 | 1.56825 |
| IDR | Indonesia Rupiahs | 0.00316762 | 315.695 |
| IEP | Ireland Pounds ** | 34.4173 | 0.0290552 |
| ILS | Israel New Shekels | 6.56133 | 0.152408 |
| ITL | Italy Lire ** | 0.0139990 | 71.4337 |
| JMD | Jamaica Dollars | 0.653644 | 1.52988 |
| JPY | Japan Yen | 0.234602 | 4.26253 |
| JOD | Jordan Dinars | 43.8928 | 0.0227828 |
| LBP | Lebanon Pounds | 0.0205548 | 48.6504 |
| LUF | Luxembourg Francs ** | 0.671936 | 1.48824 |
| MYR | Malaysia Ringgits | 8.19163 | 0.122076 |
| MXN | Mexico Pesos | 3.45382 | 0.289535 |
| NZD | New Zealand Dollars | 13.7078 | 0.0729510 |
| NOK | Norway Kroner | 3.51493 | 0.284501 |
| NLG | Netherlands Guilders ** | 12.3001 | 0.0813002 |
| PKR | Pakistan Rupees | 0.518235 | 1.92963 |
| PHP | Philippines Pesos | 0.609957 | 1.63946 |
| XPT | Platinum Ounces | 16,150.59 | 0.0000619172 |
| PLN | Poland Zlotych | 7.56853 | 0.132126 |
| PTE | Portugal Escudos ** | 0.135203 | 7.39627 |
| ROL | Romania Lei | 0.000944891 | 1,058.32 |
| RUR | Russia Rubles | 1.00000 | 1.00000 |
| SAR | Saudi Arabia Riyals | 8.29854 | 0.120503 |
| XAG | Silver Ounces | 144.081 | 0.00694056 |
| SGD | Singapore Dollars | 16.8928 | 0.0591967 |
| SKK | Slovakia Koruny | 0.649008 | 1.54081 |
| ZAR | South Africa Rand | 2.73998 | 0.364967 |
| KRW | South Korea Won | 0.0235614 | 42.4423 |
| ESP | Spain Pesetas ** | 0.162909 | 6.13838 |
| XDR | IMF Special Drawing Rights | 38.8009 | 0.0257726 |
| SDD | Sudan Dinars | 0.119692 | 8.35476 |
| SEK | Sweden Kronor | 3.00359 | 0.332935 |
| CHF | Switzerland Francs | 18.5099 | 0.0540253 |
| TWD | Taiwan New Dollars | 0.890415 | 1.12307 |
| THB | Thailand Baht | 0.714552 | 1.39948 |
| TTD | Trinidad and Tobago Dollars | 5.08497 | 0.196658 |
| TRL | Turkey Liras | 0.0000231531 | 43,190.80 |
| VEB | Venezuela Bolivares | 0.0337971 | 29.5884 |
| ZMK | Zambia Kwacha | 0.00696197 | 143.638 |
| Russia : Geographic coordinates | 60 00 N, 100 00 E |
| Russia : Population growth rate | -0.35% |
| Russia : Birth rate | 9.35 births/1,000 population |
| Russia : Death rate | 13.85 deaths/1,000 population |
| Russia : People living with HIV/AIDS | 130,000 |
| Russia : Independence | 24 August 1991 |
| Russia : National holiday | Russia Day, 12 June |
| Russia : Constitution | 12 December 1993 |
| Russia : GDP | purchasing power parity - $1.12 trillion |
| Russia : GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $7,700 |
| Russia : Electricity - consumption | 728.2 billion kWh |
| Russia : Exports | $105.1 billion petroleum and petroleum products, natural gas, wood and wood products, metals, chemicals, and a wide variety of civilian and military manufactures |
| Russia : Imports | $44.2 billion machinery and equipment, consumer goods, medicines, meat, grain, sugar, semifinished metal products |
| Russia : Telephones | 30 million |
| Russia : Mobile cellular | 2.5 million |
| Russia : Radio broadcast stations | AM 420, FM 447, shortwave 56 |
| Russia : Radios | 61.5 million |
| Russia : Television broadcast stations | 7,306 |
| Russia : Televisions | 60.5 million |
| Russia : Internet country code | .ru |
| Russia : Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 35 |
| Russia : Internet users | 9.2 million |
| Russia : Railways | 149,000 km |
| Russia : Highways | 952,000 km |
| Russia : Waterways | 95,900 km |
| Russia : Pipelines | crude oil 48,000 km; petroleum products 15,000 km; natural gas 140,000 km |
| Russia : Ports and harbors | Arkhangel'sk, Astrakhan', Kaliningrad, Kazan', Khabarovsk, Kholmsk, Krasnoyarsk, Moscow, Murmansk, Nakhodka, Nevel'sk, Novorossiysk, Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy, Saint Petersburg, Rostov, Sochi, Tuapse, Vladivostok, Volgograd, Vostochnyy, Vyborg |
| Russia : Merchant marine | 878 ships |
| Russia : Airports | 2,743 |
| Russia : Heliports | N/A |
| Russia : Military branches | Ground Forces, Navy, Air Force, Strategic Rocket Forces |
| Russia : Military expenditures | N/A |