Russian Federation

The Russian Federation (ru: Российская Федерация) is a country in northern Eurasia, covering some 40% of Europe and roughly as much of Asia. It is a semi-presidential republic, comprising 15 federal subjects. Officially it's known as both Russia and the Russian Federation (Russian: Россия/Российская Федерация). Russia has the world's largest reserves of mineral and energy resources.

the Russian Tsardom & Imperial era
The Russian Tsardom is usually seen to have been founded in the city of Jaroslawl in 897. By the year 1000 Moscow had overtaken Jaroslaws role as capital city and the country started to expand over the Siberian plains. The Russian hordes continued their expansion all the way to the Pacific Ocean and laid by doing this the foundation of the Russian Empire. When Peter the Great became Tsar in 1689, he declared the foundation of the Russian Empire in December 1689, just a month after the Russian capture of the former Byzantine capital of Constantinople (the city remained under Russian control 32 years). The Empire was "re-declared" in 1705 when Peter I officially moved the capital of the Empire to his new city Sankt Peterburg.

Revolution of 1917 and communist take-over
By the end of 1917, large scaled famine and general misconduct of the national policies by the Emperor, the misery for a large number of the inhabitants in the Empire has become so tremendous that a revolution sparked in November 1917.The imperial family fled from Sankt Peterburg to the siberian town of Yekaterinburg. In Sankt Petersburg the leaders of the revolution declared the Republic of Russia on the 19th of November 1917. The republic was short lived and in 6 weeks the Republic saw 14 governments and as many presidents. This sparked a new revolution which in only one month evolved into a civil war. 3 years and 22 million deaths later the communists emerged as the winners of the war. On 8th November 1920 the Russian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic was declared. The communist founded the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, a state that would last for over 70 years. But by the end of the 80s control of the country was quickly slipping out of the hands of the USSR government because their very liberal policies. The situation evolved during the spring of 1991 and by the end of May both the KSSR and the BySSR had started to call for independence. On the 12th of July the government of the RSFSR declared the RSFSR a sovereign nation, and changed the name of the country to the Russian Republic. By the end of the year the Soviet government transferred all powers and authority to the government of the Russian Republic and on the 31th of December at 23.55 the red communist banner was lowered over the Kremlin and replaced by the Russian tricolor.

Creation of the Russian Federation
The leaders of Belarussia, Ukraine, Russia and Kazakhstan met in Moscow in February 1992 and signed the Treaty of Creation of the Russian Federation, where Belorus, Ukraine and Kazakhstan gave up their sovereignty and was annexed by the Russian Republic which in the same treaty changed name to the Russian Federation. Thus the Russian Federation is not a union of nations but a federal state. No subject of the federation has the right to declare independence from the federation. Following the tumult in the Baltic states from 1991 to 1998 the government of the Russian Federation decided that the insecurity of the areas had to be something done about and on the 1st of November 1998 the Russian Federation annexed the countries.

National Anthem
The State Anthem of the Russian Federation is the national anthem of Russia, "Государственный Гимн Российской Федерации" in Russian.

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. In February 2010 the Russian coat of arms was charged in the centre, some analysts has said this reflects the imperial aspirations of the "new Russia".

A 2:5 ratio version of the Russian flag is used when the President is at sea and a square version to denote the presence of the Russian President.

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 current president is Dmitry Romanov, currently serving his 1st term as president, he took office in December 2004 and had his term extended by a referendum in December 2008 by 2 years to 2010.

The official residence of the President is the Moscow Kremlin, often referred to as simply "the Kremlin". It also referres to the Russian government as a whole, e.g. "the Kremlin has decided that.." The study of Russian politics and the Russian government is called Kremlinology.

Chairman of the Government
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".

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.

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 resignation of the Prime Minister automatically means the resignation of the whole governement as a body.

The Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation
The Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation, the legislature of the Russian Federation, consists of the lower house, the State Duma and the upper house, the Federal Council. The State Duma adopts decrees on issues referred to its authority by the Constitution of the Russian Federation. Decrees of the State Duma are adopted by a majority of the total number of deputies of the State Duma, unless another procedure is envisaged by the Constitution. All bills are first approved by the State Duma and are further debated and approved (or rejected) by the Federation Council and then by the President.

In the legislative elections 15 of the 16 federal subjects send 20 representants each to the State Duma, the Leningrad Oblast and the Moscow Speacial Administrative Region each sends 47 representants and 2 representants are appointed to the post of Speaker of the State Duma and Deputy Speaker of the Duma by the president, adding up to 396 delegates in the State Duma. The Siberian Special Administrative Region does not send representatives to the State Dume because of a temporary Presidential decree on martial law there.

The Federal Council has 82 members, 40 of them are members for life, appointed by the president, the other 42 are elected 3 from each federal subject, here also with the exception of the Siberian Special Administrative Region. The members appointed by the president can and may be removed from their post at any time by the president.

The Council is charged in cooperating with the State Duma in completing and voting on draft laws. Federal laws concerning budgets, customs regulations, credit monitoring, and the ratification of international treaties are to be considered by the Council after they have been adopted from the State Duma, where most legislation is introduced.

the Constitutional Court
Constitutional Court of 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.

Subdivision of the Federation
Russia is a federation that consists of 16 subjects. There are 4 diffrent categories of subjects in use, Republic/Federal Republic, Oblast, Region and Special Administrative Region.

Politics
As of March 2010 there are a total of 104 registered political parties in the Russian Federation. Of those only 4 parties has a large enough support to have seats in the State Duma. The Constitution of the Russian Federation states that a party must have a support of at least 7% to gain seats in the State Duma. Since 2005 the United Russia party has held a firm grip of power in Russia. It has a majority in all functions of government.

Elections
The following elections are required by the Constitution to be held on a federal level in the Russian Federation:
 * Presidential elections, held every 4th year
 * Legislative elections, held every 4th year

In addition following local elections are required to be held:
 * Election of Executive Authority (President/Governor/Mayor of a Subject)
 * Elections of the Subjects Legislative
 * Municipality elections

Central Election Commission
The Central Election Commission of the Russian Federation (Russian: Центральная избирательная комиссия Российской Федерации) is the superior power body responsible for conducting federal elections and overseeing local elections in the Russian Federation. It consists of 115 members of which the President of the Russian Federation appoints 85 and the State Duma and the Federation Council of Russia each appoint 15 members. In turn, these members elect the Chairman, Deputy Chairman and Secretary. The Commission is in power for a two-year term.

The Central Election Commission of the Russian Federation gathers all election ballots to their headquarters in Moscow where the votes are counted. The only supervising body is the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation. All votes are registered in the Central Archives of the Government of the Russian Federation.

Armed Forces
The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation was created in 1992 following the breakup of the Soviet Union and the formation of the Russian Federation. The Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces is the President of the Russian Federation.

The Defence Ministry of the Russian Federation serves as the administrative body of the Armed Forces. Russia is currently re-organizing it's army from having used conscription since tsarist times to a permanent professional army.

The Russian military is divided into the following branches: Ground Forces and the Air Force, and there are also three independent arms of service: the Strategic Missile Troops, the Armed Space Forces and the Airborne Troops.

The Ground Forces are divided into 6 (7) military districts:
 * Moscow Military District
 * Leningrad Military District
 * North Caucasus Military District
 * Volga-Ural Military District
 * Siberian Military District
 * Far East Military District

The seventh being the Military District for Administration of Occupied Territories in time of War.

The Strategic Rocket Forces
The Strategic Rocket Forces is currently commanded by General of the Army, Nikolai Serdyukov. The use of the BCMs has to be authorized by the president.


 * 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".


 * 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.


 * Both the Topol-M and the Bulava missiles are designed to carry up to 5 nuclear warheads each. It is planned that the Russian Federation will start developing missiles equipped with nuclear warheads in fall 2010.

the FSB
The Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation is the main domestic security service of the Russian Federation. The FSB is involved mainly in internal affairs, border security, and surveillance, but participates also in some counter-intelligence and counter-terrorism operations which are mostly operated by the KGB. Both the FSB and the KGB are subordinated the Office of the President of the Russian Federation and they answer to the President only.

the KGB
The KGB (Komitet gosudarstvennoy bezopasnosti), Committee for State Security in English, is the "secret police" of Russia. Most of the information of what the agency is doing remains classified. President Romanov confirmed the existence of the agency in 2006. After that very little information has been given by the Kremlin on what the exact purpose of the agency is.

Federal Space Agency of the Russian Federation
Created in December 2009, the Federal Space Agency of the Russian Federation (ru:Федеральная Космическое Агентство Российской Федерации), the main purpose at the moment is to prepare the launch of the Russian satellite system which will, when finished serve the Armed Space Forces, the national tv-networks and the radar/satellite-tracking system of the Armed Forces of Russia (Глобальная РЛС-Спутниковая Система, Global'naya RLS-Sputnikovaya Sistema)

Foreign Relations
The Russian Federation maintains diplomatic relations with all nations in the world, with only a hand full exceptions. Foreign relations is handled by the President and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In the case of a military conflict, according to the Constitution all foreign business is to be administered by the President and the Ministy of Foreign Affairs up until a declaration of war has been given, after which the matter is transferred to the Ministry of Defense.

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.

Russia has extensive reserves of natural resources such as oil, natural gas, minerals, coal and precious metals, and the rise in prices of all these has contributed to the large growth of the Russian economy in the 2000s (ranging from 13 to 19% annually).

Bank of Russia
See also:
 * Gazprom
 * Investment Bank of the Russian Federation
 * OAO Aeroflot

St. Petersburg
The capital of the Russian Empire 1705-1917. It is generally accepted as the cultural capital of the Russian Federation, it is also a major economical and political center in the north-western part of the country. St. Petersburg is also the biggest export harbour in Europe, handling goods brought from as far as the Asian part of Siberia.

St. Petersburg also has an enormous cultural heritage, grand palaces and huge parks in late baroque style. From 1928 to 1991 the city was named Leningrad. The federal region is still named Leningrad Oblast.

Kiev
The former capital of Ukraine is now a dynamic growing economic center in the south-west of the country. In later years the city houses a growing number of immigrants, both from Europe and parts of the Islam Asia.

Minsk
Minsk was from 1991 to 1992 the capital of the Republic of Belarus. Founded in about 1000 AD it is one of the oldest cities in Europe. Very little of the original city remains as the Soviets almost completly rebuilt the city 1950-1960.

Although the region almost exclusively is belarussian the city is completly russophone.

Minsk is the European command center of the Russian Federal Space Agency.

Yekaterinburg
Formerly named Sverdlovsk, the city is today a big political center in western Siberia. Steel and oil are the main products coming from the city.

Irkutsk
Irkutsk is the absolute political center of the Asian part of Russia. A growing number of Chinese immigrants has contrubuted to the rapid growth of the city.

Vladivostok
Vladivostok is the home of the Pacific Fleet. A large number of the Russian ballistic missiles are located here.

Demographics
One of the largest problems the Russian governement is facing is the nations demographics. The rapidly growing Russian economy has needs greater than the Russian population can offer. In 2008 there were 3,2 jobs/unemployed. The situation eased a little bit in the beginning of 2009 when the government issued permit to 2,000 foreign workers to work in the Russian Federation for 24 months.

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.

Television and Internet
The government-owned All-Russia State Television and Radio Company (Russian: Всероссийская государственная телевизионная и радиовещательная компания) operates most of media output in the Russian Federation. Foreign channels has to acquire a license of broadcast in every subject of the Russian Federation. Foreign channels may not transmit in the national network.

Channels operated by the government and 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).

The authorities has according to the National Security act in 2004 the right to shut down internet sites considered harmful to the national security of the Russian Federation. Some controversy arose in the 2004 presidential elections when 3 of the 6 candidates internet sites were shut down by the FSB.

New Year
The New Year is the first in calendar and in popularity. Currently the New Year is a bigger holiday than Christmas in Russia. At midnight the Presidents New Year's speech is broadcasted on all television channels.

Independence Day 12.1
Is celebrated since 2010 to commemorate the fall of the Russian Empire-alliance.

Victory Day 9.5.
Every 9 May, Russia celebrates the victory over Nazi Germany, while remembering those who died in order to achieve it. On 9 May 1945 (by Moscow time) the German military surrendered to the Soviet Union and the Allies of World War II in Berlin (Karlshorst). An enormous military parade is held on Red Square in Moscow to celebrate the day. It is by far the biggest Russian holiday.

Day of National Unity 4.11.
Unity Day, first celebrated in 2005, commemorates the popular uprising led by Kuzma Minin and Dmitry Pozharsky which ejected the Polish invaders from Moscow in November of 1612.

Defenders of the Motherland Day 23.11
On this day Russia honors those who are presently serving in the Armed Forces and those who have served in the past.

Christmas
Since 1992 Christmas has been openly observed in Russia and now the New Year's celebration usually flows into the celebration of the Russian Orthodox Christmas. Russian Christmas comes two weeks later than in other countries, on January 7. This difference is due to the Russian Orthodox Church that follows the Julian (old style) calendar.