Russian Federation

The National Anthem
The State Anthem of the Russian Federation (Russian: Государственный гимн Российской Федерации, Gosudarstvenny Gimn Rossiyskoy Federatsii) is the national anthem of Russia

While it is the choice of the performer to execute the anthem using only music, only words or a combination of both, it must be performed using the official lyrics and music provided by law. After the performance is recorded, it can be used for any purpose, such as a radio or television broadcast. The anthem can be played during solemn or celebratory occasions, but it is required to be played at the swearing-in of the President of Russia, opening and closing sessions of the Duma and the Federation Council, and official state ceremonies. The anthem is also played on television and radio before the start and closing of programming or if the programming is continuous, the anthem is played at 2400 and 0600 hours. The anthem is also played at sporting events both in Russia and abroad, but according to the protocol of the organization that is hosting the games. When the anthem is played, all men's and women's headgear must be removed and people must face the Russian flag, if it is present. Those who are in uniform must give a military salute when the anthem plays.

Watch the anthem being played on the Red Square here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=66-yfZUrLi8

National Flag
The flag of Russia (Russian: Флаг России, Flag Rossii) is a tricolour of three equal horizontal fields, white on the top, blue in the middle and red on the bottom. The flag of Russia provided the Pan-Slavic colours of red, blue and white that appear in the flags of Slavic countries (including Croatia, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia and Serbia).

Presidential Standard
The presidential standard is a square version of the Russian flag, charged in the centre with the Russian coat of arms. Golden fringe is added to the standard. Copies of the standard are used inside his office, at the Kremlin, other state agencies, and while the president is travelling in a vehicle inside Russia. A 2:3 ratio version of the flag is used when the President is at sea. This is the mostly used symbol to denote the presence of the Russian President.

The Victory Banner
The Soviet/Russian Victory Banner (Russian: Знамя Победы) is the banner that was raised by Red Army soldiers on the Reichstag in Berlin, in 1945.

On Victory Day, 9 May, the same banner that was raised over the Reichstag is hoisted over the Kremlin together with the National Flag. A copy of the banner is carried immediately behind the flag of the Russian Federation by members of the Presidential Guard during the Victory Day parade in Moscow.

The Cyrillic inscription reads: "150th Rifle, Order of Kutuzov 2nd class, 'Idritskaya' Division, 79th Rifle Corps, 3rd Shock Army, 1st Byelorussian Front."

President of the Russian Federation
The President of the Russian Federation is the head of state, supreme commander-in-chief and holder of the highest office within the Government of Russia.

According to the Constitution of the Russian Federation, a person willing to run for presidency has to be a citizen of the Russian Federation not younger than 35, who has permanently resided in the Russian Federation for not less than 10 years.

The Constitution of the Russian Federation does not restrict the amount of terms that a person can hold the office of the President and there is no limit to successive terms that a President may be served. Each term lasts 1460 days(4 years)

The current President of the Russian Federation: Dmitry Romanov

Нынешний Президент Российской Федерации: Дмитрий Романов

Acting President of the Russian Federation
In case of the President's death, resignation or impeachment, the Prime Minister becomes a temporary president until new presidential elections which must take place within thirty days. The Prime Minister acting as president may not dissolve the State Duma, announce a referendum or propose amendments to the Constitution.

From May the 3rd to May the 5th 2009, Nikolay Grushin acted as president of the Russian Federation as the country lacked a democratically elected president and legislative organs. Note that President Grushin then posessed all the powers a democratically elected president would have possessed. He was elected as president on the 5th of May.

The Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation
The Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation is the second most powerful official of the Russian Federation, who, under Article 24 of the Federal Constitutional Law On the Government of the Russian Federation, "heads the Government of the Russian Federation".

Nowhere in the Russian Law is he literally referred to as "head of government"; such designation nonetheless being commonly used. The use of the term "Prime Minister" is strictly informal and is not allowed for by the Russian Constitution and other laws because the supreme executive powers are constitutionally vested in the President of Russia, who is also Russia's head of state.

In case of the President's death, resignation or impeachment, the Prime Minister becomes a temporary president until new presidential elections which must take place within three days. The Prime Minister acting as president may not dissolve the State Duma, announce a referendum or propose amendments to the Constitution.

The Prime Minister may be dismissed by the President at any time at President's own discretion. The Chairman may also tender his resignation to the President on his own initiative. The President may reject such resignation and oblige him to work further. The Prime Minister and the whole government are constitutionally obliged to resign after the inauguration of a newly-elected President. The resignation of the Prime Minister automatically means the resignation of the whole governement as a body.

List of Ministries
 * State Ministry
 * First Deputy Prime Minister
 * Second Deputy Prime Minister
 * Ministry of Finance
 * Ministry of Defence
 * Ministry of Foreign Affairs
 * Interior Ministry
 * Energy Ministry
 * Ministry of Affairs of Civil Defense, Emergencies and Disaster Relief
 * Ministry of Communication and Media
 * Ministry of Agriculture
 * Ministry of Justice
 * Ministry of Transports
 * Ministry of Health and Social Affairs
 * Ministry of Industry and Trade
 * Ministry of Minister for Sport, Tourism and Youth
 * Ministry of Natural Resources

The Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation
The Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation is the legislature of the Russian Federation. It consists of the State Duma, which is the lower house, and the Federation Council, which is the upper house. Both houses are located in Moscow. The State Duma in the 880 metre high Rossiya(Россия) skyscraper completed in July 2009.

Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation
The Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation (Russian: Конституционный Суд Российской Федерации) is a high court which is empowered to rule on whether or not certain laws or presidential decrees are in fact contrary to the Constitution of Russia. Its objective is only to protect the Constitution (in Russian constitutional law this function is known as "constitutional control" or "constitutional supervision") and deal with a few kind of disputes where it has original jurisdiction, whereas the highest appellate court is the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation.

Subdivision of Russia
Russia is a federation that consists of 16 subjects. There are 4 diffrent categories of subjects in use and one possible category nolonger in use, but possible to apply to a future subject. All subjects has equal representation in the State Duma and in the Federal Counsil. However they differ in degree of "domestic" independence i.e. the administrationinside their respective territory. E.g. Republics have their own President and Duma.


 * Republic / Federal Republic


 * Oblast


 * Region


 * Special Administrative Region (Governed directly by the Kremlin)


 * Krai (in use before may 2009)



United Russia
The United Russia-party has been holding a firm grip of almost all government positions since the beginning of 2005. The party has a total majority in the Duma (88% of the seats) and almost all leaders of the federal subject are also members of the party. Officially the president is not a member of any party but the United Russia party is the primary supporter of the president.

Armed Forces
The Russian military is divided into the following branches: Ground Forces, Navy, Strategic Rocket Forces and Air Force. The Armed Forces as a whole seem to be traditionally referred to as the Army (armiya), except in some cases, the Navy

The Defence Ministry of the Russian Federation serves as the administrative body of the military and the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces is the President of the Russian Federation.

Minister of Defence and General of the Army, Dmitry Gagarin, stated on the 15.5.2009 that the Russian government is to spend possibly as much as 1,000,000 roubles on the armed forces during the next 30 days. This amount was reduced to 500,000 roubles on the 23rd of May

15.5.2009 at 20:05 the State Duma finally approved the bill that officially changes the Russian status on nuclear weapons and at the same time authorized the Defence Ministry to start investigate the possibility for Russia to acquire nuclear weapons. Half an hour later, at 20.35, Moscow time, the bill was approved by the President by Presidential Decree 85. The President signed at the same time Presidential Decree 86 which created the Strategic Rocket Forces of the Russian Federation.

On the 5.10.2009 the Russian Federation was brutally attacked by Alaska. The Russian Armed Forces was unprepared for the attack and serious scarcities in the defence of the nation was revealed. As a result of this the President of the Russian Federation issued Presidential Decree No.103 which approves a 500,000 rouble one time expenditure on the Armed Forces and a 100,000 roubles/every 2nd day the following month.

Strategic Rocket Forces
The RT-2UTTKh «Topol-M» (Russian: РТ-2УТТХ «Тополь-М») is the most recent ballistic cruise missiles to be deployed by the Russian Federation, introduced on the 1.6.2009.

In its Russian designation РТ stands for "ракета твердотопливная," Raketa Tverdotoplivnaya ("solid fuel rocket"), while УТТХ - for "улучшенные тактико-технические характеристики," uluchshenniye taktiko-tekhnicheskie kharahteristiki ("improved tactical and technical characteristics"). "Topol" (тополь) in Russian means "poplar".

The Bulava-missile is the future submarine-based version of the Topol M.

On the 24.9.2009 the Strategic Rocket Forces tested the new Bulava missile, it was lauched from a submarine in the Baltic Sea and reached its target on the Kamchatka peninsula, over 8,000 km away.

In the Russian-Cosmerian War in the fall of 2009 the Topol-M missiles performed excellently. The 15th Strategic Rocket Ground Forces Division launched several successful missile attacks on the Cosmerian forces.

The Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation (FSB)
The Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation (FSB) (Russian: ФСБ, Федеральная служба безопасности Российской Федерации; Federalnaya Sluzhba Bezopasnosti Rossiyskoy Federaciyi) is the main domestic security service of the Russian Federation and the main successor agency of the Soviet-era Cheka, NKVD, and KGB.

The FSB is involved in counter-intelligence, internal and border security, counter-terrorism, and surveillance. Its headquarters are on Lubyanka Square, downtown Moscow, the same location as the former headquarters of the KGB.

the Free Peoples Coalition
On the 2nd of May the Minister of Foreign Affairs submitted the application to join the Free Peoples Coalition and officially transferred the matter to the Prime Minister. On the 3rd of May after having been accepted into the alliance the State Duma voted 306-54 for the decision and later that afternoon the President signed, in a formal ceremony in the Grand Kremlin Palace, the document that officially joined the Russian Federation to the FPC (Presidential Decree 83 (Указ президента no.83)).

On July 9th the Russian Federation left the alliance. (Presidential Decree 91 (Указ президента no.91))

the Russian Empire
On the 9th of July the Minister of Foreign Affairs submitted, on request of the President of the Russian Federation, the application for joining the Russian Empire alliance. Minister Sokolov commented to the RossiyaPlaneta-channel journalists that it is very likely that the Russian Federation will be accepted into the alliance and that this will be a very profitable solution for Russia. The Russian Federation officially joined the alliance later that afternoon at a ceremony held in the Presidential Summer Palace just outside Moscow.

Territorial Claims
The territorial Claims of the Russian Federation are stated in Article IV §3-§12 in the Constitution of the Russian Federation. The Russian Federation has claimed basically the territory of the former Russian Empire, note; this excluding Finland, although the Russian government has reserved the right to do so.

The Russian-Cosmerian War of 2009
On the 27.10.2009 at 10:50 (Moscow time) the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation launched a massive offensive at the nation of Cosmera. The President of the Russian Federation had declared war only minutes earlier. This was done in accordance with the alliance treaty of the Russian Empire-alliance. Although the Communist Party and the Democratic Russia-party was quick to condemn the governments actions as to hasty the popular opinion seems to be in favour of the war.

At noon on the 28.10.2009 the President issued a decree authorizing the allocation of up to 90% of the national tax revenue to the war. This will enable the Russian army to perform its duties to the state even more efficient. All offensives on the Cosmerian Army was successful for the Russian Federation on this day.



At 22h00 on the 29th of October the President of the Russian Federation accepted, in understanding with the leader of the RE-alliance, and the leader of Cosmera, an armistice and thereafter declared that the state of war between the nations was now over. The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation begun their immediate withdrawal from Cosmerian territory. A large Victory banquet was thereafter held in the Grand Kremlin Palace, hosted by the President, and a large firework ceremony over the Red Square accompanied by the State Hymn of the Russian Federation concluded the official celebrations.

Black list
The government of the Russian Federation has since the beginning of July 2009 adopted a non-tolerance policy of nations that not respect agreements made with Russia. The government has because of numerous incidents decided to publish a so called Black list of nations that are considered rouge states and in which a change of leadership, or similar event, is needed for the Russian Federation to start co-operating with that state again. The nation is able to contact the President of the Russian Federation to discuss how to improve relations.

Blacklisted states are subdivided into 5 categories;

[W] The Russian Federation maintains foreign relations with the nation in question, but there is reason for consern in the nation listed at W-status.

[B] The Russian Federation calls home it's diplomats and other staff of the embassy and consulates. Diplomatic relations are maintained by phone, post or other.

[D] Total cut in diplomatic realtions, the nation in question now has to do serious changes to restore relations with Russia.

[E] All contact with the country is cut, ie. Trade agreements are cancelled and citizens of this nation are not allowed to travel to the Russian Federation.

[X] the Russian Federation considers this nation a threath against its national security and has the right do defend itself, even with a preemptive attack.

Economy
Since the fall of the communist regime in 1991 and at the same time the end of the RSFSR the Russian Federation has adopted a year by year more successful mixed market and state-planned economy. The Russian economy shows a great diversity ranging from small companies such as one man small stores to medium sized national companies all the way to huge international enterprises such as for exemple GazProm which ranked as the 5th largest company in the world 2009.

Bank of Russia
Officially the Central Bank of the Russian Federation (ru: Центральный банк Российской Федерации), it was created in 1992 following the elimination of the State Bank of the Russian SFSR. The Bank of Russia is the main regulator of the banking industry. It is responsible for issuing banking licences and setting rules of banking operations and accounting standards. The bank serves as a lender of last resort for credit organisations. It is also responsible for the country's monetary policy, including the level of the shortest interbank interest rate. By influencing the ruble interest rate, it also influences the price of the ruble in terms of foreign currencies.

2009 Tax reform
Background

The Russian Federation has not really changed it's taxation system since the 1977 tax reform in the Russian SFSR(Soviet Federative Socialist Republic). The system has been based on a fixed taxrate which has fluctuated greatly over the years, from 21% 1977-1991 down to only 11% 1991-1999 and finally rising from 12% to as high as 26% in 2008.

The Reform

The reform itself is to be done in 3 steps;

First step (planned to October 2009):

''- Citizens with an income below 5,000 rubles a month will get their taxrate cut to the half  (->13%).

- Retired citizens, front veterans and single mothers with 2+ children will get their  taxrate cut to the half (->13%).

- Large and medium sized companies and corporations will get a one time taxpayment of 10% of their turnover. (ie. GazProm, turnover 2008 ~3,5 trillion rubles -> taxation 350 billion  rubles, with deflation -> ~300 billion rubles.)''

Second step (planned to January 2010)

''- Citizens with an income of 5,000-10,000 rubles a month will get their taxrate lowered to 18% (from 26%)

- Starting January 2010 companies that are not owned by the Russian state are to pay an annual operating licence (Лицензия) of 1% of last years revenue. This is payed in January the following year.

- A Value added tax (VAT) (11%) on any value that is added to a product is to be introduced.''

Third step (July 2010)

''- Citizens with an income of over 10,000 rubles a month will get get their taxrate fixed at 25%.

- An income tax of 8% will be introduced for citizens who has an income of over 50,000 rubles a month, the tax is to be counted as follows:

Income tax 2011:

''Total income 2010 	735,600 roubles	/ 12months = 61,300 roubles/month 			735,600 roubles x 0,08 = 58,848 roubles income tax.  The income tax is as one can see not counted on the monthly income, but on the total income per year divided by 12 (months).

Demographics
One of the largest problems the Russian governement is facing is the nations demographics. The growing Russian economy has needs greater than the Russian population can offer. Although the governement has done an excellent job handling the matter there is still a lot to be done.

On the 23rd of May 2009 the State Duma approved "the Demographics Project 09" of President Grushin, it allows the government to freely allocate as much as 50% of the budget every other day on infrastructure. The Communist Party and the Democratic Russia-party oppose the bill. The project was cancelled by President Romanov on the 2.7.2009

VrGTRK
All-Russia State Television and Radio Company (Russian: Всероссийская государственная телевизионная и радиовещательная компания)

Channels operated(percentage state owned):


 * Channel One - Первый Канал (99%)
 * RossiyaPlaneta (99%)
 * Telekanal Rossiya - Телеканал Россия (60%)
 * RossiyaKultura - РоссияКультура (60%)
 * RossiyaSport - РоссияСпорт (60%)
 * RossiyaMir - РоссияМир (60%)
 * NTV - НТВ (55%)

Privately Owned Channels

 * MTVRussia
 * BcS
 * Ruscom
 * TelevidenyeRossiya (State Owned 34%)

Internet
[.ru] is the Internet country code top-level domain (ccTLD) for the Russian Federation and since August 2009 the Russian Federation has also reserved the right to use the domain [.su] (Soviet Union).

Language and Religion
Russian is the only official state language, but the Constitution gives the individual republics the right to make their native language co-official next to Russian. Despite its wide dispersal, the Russian language is homogeneous throughout Russia.

Russian Orthodoxy is the dominant religion in Russia, less than 1% considered themselves either Buddhist, Catholic, Protestant or Jewish. Another 12% said they believe in God, but did not practice any religion, and 16% said they are non-believers. Since the terrorist attacks in the Moscow metro in 2004 islam (both sunni and shiite) is banned in the Russian Federation and practicing of it is treated as a legal offence similar to planning terrorism or other contra-state action.

On the 23.6.2009 the Duma passed a bill making Orthodox christianity the only offical religion throughout the Russian Federation. The bill was confirmed by a presidential decree signed shortly after.