ÿþ<html> <head> <title> Russia Introduction 2012, CIA World Factbook </title> <META NAME="Description" CONTENT="Russia Introduction 2012, CIA World Factbook"> <META NAME="keywords" CONTENT="Russia, Introduction, 2012, CIA, World, Factbook"> <script language="JavaScript"> function AddToFaves_hp(){ var is_4up = parseInt(navigator.appVersion); var is_mac = navigator.userAgent.toLowerCase().indexOf("mac")!=-1; var is_ie = navigator.userAgent.toLowerCase().indexOf("msie")!=-1; var thePage = location.href; if (thePage.lastIndexOf('#')!=-1) thePage = thePage.substring(0,thePage.lastIndexOf('#')); if (is_ie && is_4up && !is_mac) window.external.AddFavorite(thePage,document.title); else if (is_ie || document.images) booker_hp = window.open(thePage,'booker_','menubar,width=325,height=100,left=140,top=60'); //booker_hp.focus(); } //--> </script> <script type="text/javascript"> (function() { var po = document.createElement('script'); po.type = 'text/javascript'; po.async = true; po.src = 'https://apis.google.com/js/plusone.js'; var s = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(po, s); })(); </script> <style type="text/css"> A:link { text-decoration: none; color:#000066; } A:visited { text-decoration: none; color:#000066; } A:active { text-decoration: none; color:#000066; } A:hover { text-decoration: none; color:#990033; } a { text-decoration: none} </style> </head> <body topmargin="0" leftmargin="0" bgcolor="white"> <div id="fb-root"></div> <script>(function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = "//connect.facebook.net/en_US/all.js#xfbml=1&appId=183601415082146"; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs); }(document, 'script', 'facebook-jssdk'));</script> <table background="http://www.theodora.com/wfb2008/images/drugsbgr.gif" width="972" align="top"><tr><td colspan="2" width="972"> <font face="arial"> | <a href="http://www.theodora.com/wfb" target="_blank">COUNTRIES</a> | <a href="http://www.geographic.org/geographic_names" target="_blank">GEOGRAPHIC NAMES</a> | <a href="http://www.theodora.com/geology" target="_blank">GEOLOGY</a> | <a href="http://www.allcountries.org/uscensus/" target="_blank">USA STATS</a> | <a href="http://www.allcountries.org/china_statistics/" target="_blank">CHINA STATS</a> | <a href="http://www.geographic.org/countries/county_codes.html" target="_blank">COUNTRY CODES</a> | <a href="http://www.photius.com/wfb2001/airport_codes.html" target="_blank">AIRPORTS</a> | <a href="http://www.photius.com/religion" target="_blank">RELIGION</a> | <a href="http://www.occupationalinfo.org" target="_blank">JOBS</a> | </font></td></tr> </table> <table border="0" bgcolor="white" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" width="972" align="top" valign="top" hspace="0" vspace="0" units="pixels"> <tr><td colspan="2" width="972"><img src="http://www.theodora.com/wfb2008/images/line2.gif"></td></tr><tr height="90" align="left" valign="top"><td align="left" valign="top" width="244" nowrap><a href="http://www.theodora.com/wfb"><img border="0" src="http://www.theodora.com/images/countries_of_the_world_banner.gif"></a></td> <td align="left" valign="top" width="728" nowrap> <script type="text/javascript"><!-- google_ad_client = "ca-pub-7437757543052749"; /* WFB Leaderboard */ google_ad_slot = "7548094546"; google_ad_width = 728; google_ad_height = 90; //--> </script> <script type="text/javascript" src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js"> </script> </td></tr> <tr height="3" align="left" valign="top" bgcolor="white" nowrap units="pixels"><td colspan="2" align="left" valign="top" height="3" width="972" nowrap bgcolor="white" nowrap> <img src="http://www.theodora.com/wfb2008/images/line1.gif"></td></tr> <tr><td colspan="2" align="middle" background="http://www.theodora.com/wfb2008/images/light_blue.gif" width="972"> <font size="-2"> <br></font> <font face="arial" size="5"><b>Russia</b> Introduction 2012</font> <br> <font size = "-2"> http://www.theodora.com/wfbcurrent/russia/russia_introduction.html </font> <br> <font size="-2"><B>SOURCE: 2012 CIA WORLD FACTBOOK AND OTHER SOURCES</B></FONT></td></tr> <tr height="3" align="left" valign="top" bgcolor="white" nowrap units="pixels"> <td colspan="2" align="left" valign="top" height="3" width="972" nowrap bgcolor="white" nowrap> <img src="http://www.theodora.com/wfb2008/images/line13.gif"></td></tr></table> <table border="0" bgcolor="#FFCC99" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" width="972" align="left" valign="top" hspace="0" vspace="0" units="pixels"> <tr><td background="http://www.theodora.com/wfb2008/images/light_blue.gif" width="200" valign="top"> <font face="arial"> <br><br> <center> <script type="text/javascript"><!-- google_ad_client = "ca-pub-7437757543052749"; /* WFB Wide Skyscraper */ google_ad_slot = "0340963386"; google_ad_width = 160; google_ad_height = 600; //--> </script> <script type="text/javascript" src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js"> </script> <br><br><br><br> <br> <a href="http://www.theodora.com/dot.html" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="http://www.theodora.com/wfb2008/images/dot_ad.gif" valign="top"></a> <hr> <br><br><br><br><br> <script type="text/javascript"><!-- google_ad_client = "ca-pub-7437757543052749"; /* WFB Link Unit */ google_ad_slot = "3506820389"; google_ad_width = 200; google_ad_height = 90; //--> </script> <script type="text/javascript" src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js"> </script> <br><br><br><br> </center> </td> <td bgcolor="white" width="14"></td> <td bgcolor="white" width="558" valign="top"> <font face="arial"><br> <table><tr><td width="350"> <a href="http://www.geographic.org/geographic_names/russia/" target="_blank"><b>GEOGRAPHICAL NAMES</b></a> </td><td width="300"> <a href="http://translate.google.com/translate?u=http://www.theodora.com/wfbcurrent/russia/russia_introduction.html&sl=en&tl=es&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8" target="_blank"><img border ="0" src="http://www.theodora.com/images/spanish_translate.gif" alt="Spanish"></a> <a href="http://translate.google.com/translate?u=http://www.theodora.com/wfbcurrent/russia/russia_introduction.html&sl=en&tl=zh-CN&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8" target="_blank"><img border ="0" src="http://www.theodora.com/images/chinese_translate.gif" alt="Simplified Chinese"></a> <a href="http://translate.google.com/translate?u=http://www.theodora.com/wfbcurrent/russia/russia_introduction.html&sl=en&tl=fr&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8" target="_blank"><img border ="0" src="http://www.theodora.com/images/french_translate.gif" alt="French"></a> <a href="http://translate.google.com/translate?u=http://www.theodora.com/wfbcurrent/russia/russia_introduction.html&sl=en&tl=de&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8" target="_blank"><img border ="0" src="http://www.theodora.com/images/german_translate.gif" alt="German"></a> <a href="http://translate.google.com/translate?u=http://www.theodora.com/wfbcurrent/russia/russia_introduction.html&sl=en&tl=ru&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8" target="_blank"><img border ="0" src="http://www.theodora.com/images/russian_translate.gif" alt="Russian"></a> <a href="http://translate.google.com/translate?u=http://www.theodora.com/wfbcurrent/russia/russia_introduction.html&sl=en&tl=hi&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8" target="_blank"><img border ="0" src="http://www.theodora.com/images/hindi_translate.gif" alt="Hindi"></a> <a href="http://translate.google.com/translate?u=http://www.theodora.com/wfbcurrent/russia/russia_introduction.html&sl=en&tl=ar&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8" target="_blank"><img border ="0" src="http://www.theodora.com/images/arabic_translate.gif" alt="Arabic"></a> <a href="http://translate.google.com/translate?u=http://www.theodora.com/wfbcurrent/russia/russia_introduction.html&sl=en&tl=pt&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8" target="_blank"><img border ="0" src="http://www.theodora.com/images/portuguese_translate.gif" alt="Portuguese"></a> </td></tr></table> <HR> <br> <script type="text/javascript"><!-- google_ad_client = "ca-pub-7437757543052749"; /* WFB Large Rectangle */ google_ad_slot = "8137512903"; google_ad_width = 336; google_ad_height = 280; //--> </script> <script type="text/javascript" src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js"> </script> <br> Page last updated on February 14, <p><b><a href = "http://www.theodora.com/wfb/wfb2000/definitions.html#background">Background:</a></b><br> Founded in the 12th century, the Principality of Muscovy, was able to emerge from over 200 years of Mongol domination (13th-15th centuries) and to gradually conquer and absorb surrounding principalities. In the early 17th century, a new Romanov Dynasty continued this policy of expansion across Siberia to the Pacific. Under PETER I (ruled 1682-1725), hegemony was extended to the Baltic Sea and the country was renamed the Russian Empire. During the 19th century, more territorial acquisitions were made in Europe and Asia. Defeat in the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-05 contributed to the Revolution of 1905, which resulted in the formation of a parliament and other reforms. Repeated devastating defeats of the Russian army in World War I led to widespread rioting in the major cities of the Russian Empire and to the overthrow in 1917 of the imperial household. The Communists under Vladimir LENIN seized power soon after and formed the USSR. The brutal rule of Iosif STALIN (1928-53) strengthened Communist rule and 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 Russia and 14 other independent republics. Since then, Russia has shifted its post-Soviet democratic ambitions in favor of a centralized semi-authoritarian state in which the leadership seeks to legitimize its rule through managed national elections, populist appeals by former President PUTIN, and continued economic growth. Russia has severely disabled a Chechen rebel movement, although violence still occurs throughout the North Caucasus. </font> <p> <p> <BR> <P> <font size = "-2"><B> NOTE: The information regarding Russia on this page is re-published from the 2012 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Russia Introduction 2012 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Russia Introduction 2012 should be addressed to the CIA. </B></font> </P> <br> <hr> <a href="#" onClick="AddToFaves_hp()"><img src="http://www.theodora.com/images/bookmark_banner.gif" align="left" width="176" height="52" border="0"></a><font color=brown> - Please bookmark this page (add it to your favorites). <br> - If you wish to <b>link</b> to this page, you can do so by referring to the URL address below this line.</font> <hr> http://www.theodora.com/wfbcurrent/russia/russia_introduction.html <br><br> This page was last modified 06-Mar-12 <br> Copyright &copy 1995-2012 <a href="http://www.theodora.com/ita.html">ITA</a> all rights reserved. <br> </td> <td width=200 valign="top" align="left" background="http://www.theodora.com/wfb2008/images/light_blue.gif"> <!-- SiteSearch Google --> <br> <form action="http://www.google.com/cse" id="cse-search-box"> <div> <input type="hidden" name="cx" value="partner-pub-7437757543052749:i8v5yg-obf2" /> <input type="hidden" name="ie" value="ISO-8859-1" /> <input type="text" name="q" size="26" /> <input type="submit" name="sa" value="Search" /> </div> </form> <script type="text/javascript" src="http://www.google.com/cse/brand?form=cse-search-box&lang=en"></script> <!-- End SiteSearch Google --> <font size="2" face="arial"> <b> <ul> <li><a href="http://www.theodora.com/wfb">|Main INDEX|</a> <li><a href="../index.html">2012 INDEX</a> <li><a href="http://www.photius.com/rankings/index.html">Country Ranks</a> <li><a href="http://www.theodora.com/wfb/wfb2000/definitions.html">DEFINITIONS</a> <br><br> <a href="index.html">Russia Index 2012</a> <br><br> <a href="http://www.theodora.com/wfbcurrent/russia/index.html">Russia Main Index</a> <li><a href="russia_introduction.html">Introduction</a> <li><a href="http://workmall.com/wfb2001/russia/russia_history_index.html">History</a> <li><a href="http://www.photius.com/countries/russia/geography/index.html">Geography</a> <li><a href="http://www.photius.com/countries/russia/climate/russia_climate_climate.html">Climate</a> <li>&nbsp;&nbsp;<a href="http://www.theodora.com/maps">Maps</a><br> <li><a href="http://www.photius.com/countries/russia/society/index.html">People</a><br> </b> &nbsp;&nbsp;<a href="http://www.photius.com/religion">Religion</a> <b><li><a href="http://www.photius.com/countries/russia/government/index.html">Government</a><br></B> &nbsp;&nbsp;<a href="russia_chiefs.html"> Gov. Leaders</a> <br>&nbsp;<a href="http://www.theodora.com/flags">Flags</a> <b><br> <li><a href="http://www.photius.com/countries/russia/economy/index.html">Economy</a> <li><a href="russia_communications.html">Communications</a> <li><a href="russia_transportation.html">Transportation</a> <br></B> &nbsp;&nbsp;<a href="http://www.photius.com/wfb2001/airport_codes_alpha.html">Airport Codes</a> <b> <li><a href="http://www.photius.com/countries/russia/national_security/index.html">Military</a> <li><a href="russia_issues.html">Transnational Issues</a> <li><a href="http://www.theodora.com/wfb/photos/">Photos</a> </ul> <ul><A href="http://www.theodora.com/wwwads.html" target="_blank">Advertise Here</a></ul> <ul> . <A href="http://www.theodora.com/theodora_feedback.html">Feedback</a> <br><br> <div class="fb-like" data-send="false" data-layout="button_count" data-width="80" data-show-faces="false"></div> <br><br> <a href="https://twitter.com/share" class="twitter-share-button" data-count="none">Tweet</a> <script>!function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js";fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,"script","twitter-wjs");</script> <br><br> <g:plusone size="medium" annotation="none"></g:plusone> <br> </ul> </b> </font> </td></tr></table> </body> </html>