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Russia is the world's
largest country.
Population: 149 million
Geographic size: 6.6 million square miles
Capital: Moscow
Major cities and population: Moscow, Saint Petersburg |
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| As the world's largest
country, Russian has a very diverse geography.
Northern
Russian extends into the Arctic Circle. This area is
primarily tundra and forests, with thousands of lakes.
Russia has many mountain areas. The Ural mountains
cover 2,500 miles of eastern Russia. The Caucasus
mountains cross the southern part of Russia, from the
Black Sea to the Caspian Sea.
From the western boarder to the Ural mountains is the
North European Plain. This is a large rolling plain with
rich soil and grasslands.
Three quarters of the Russian population lives in the
cities and towns of western Russia. |
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| About 25% of the population
still live in rural areas. |
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| Russian has a rich history.
Many of its buildings, such as this church in Moscow, |
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| Russia has a
wealth of natural resources including oil, natural gas,
minerals and timber. Moscow is the center for many
manufacturing industries including cars, steel and other
heavy manufacturing.
The southwest has rich farm land.
Crops include wheat, barley, oats, potatoes and
sunflowers. Some areas include cattle farming. Russia
also has a large ocean fishing fleet. Many of these ships
have full capabilities to clean, freeze and process the
catch. |
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| From the 1500s,
Russia was under control of Tsars. In 1917, communist
revolutionaries overthrew the Tsar to establish the
Soviet Union. Russia was the largest republic in the
Soviet Union. The Soviet Union went through considerable
political turmoil, and in 1991 abandoned communism for a
capitalist style of government. Old state industries were
replaced by private enterprise. |
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| The majority of Russians
live in the area between St. Petersburg and Moscow.
Southeast Russia is also heavily populated.
Russia has
a broad mix of ethnic groups. |
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| Russia's large
geographical territory gives it a very diverse climate.
Its northern coastline borders on the Arctic Ocean, which
gives it severe winters. In the south, Russia has hot
desert areas. |
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