Russia
Top Sights & Landmarks
Background
Founded in the 12th century, the Principality of Muscovy emerged from over 200 years of Mongol domination (13th-15th centuries) and gradually conquered and absorbed surrounding principalities. In the early 17th century, a new ROMANOV dynasty continued this policy of expansion across Siberia to the Pacific. Under PETER I (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. Devastating defeats and food shortages in World War I led to widespread rioting in the major cities of the Russian Empire and to the overthrow of the ROMANOV Dynasty in 1917. The communists under Vladimir LENIN seized power soon after and formed the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR). The brutal rule of Iosif STALIN (1928-53) strengthened communist control and Russian dominance of the Soviet Union at a cost of tens of millions of lives. After defeating Germany in World War II as part of an alliance with the US (1939-1945), the USSR expanded its territory and influence in Eastern Europe and emerged as a global power. The USSR was the principal US adversary during the Cold War (1947-1991). The Soviet economy and society stagnated in the decades following Stalin's rule, until General Secretary Mikhail GORBACHEV (1985-91) introduced glasnost (openness) and perestroika (restructuring) in an attempt to modernize communism. His initiatives inadvertently released political and economic forces that by December 1991 led to the dissolution of the USSR into Russia and 14 other independent states. In response to the ensuing turmoil during President Boris YELTSIN's term (1991-99), Russia shifted toward a centralized authoritarian state under President Vladimir PUTIN (2000-2008, 2012-present) in which the regime seeks to legitimize its rule through managed elections, populist appeals, a foreign policy focused on enhancing the country's geopolitical influence, and commodity-based economic growth. In 2014, Russia purported to annex Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula and occupied large portions of two eastern Ukrainian oblasts. In sporadic fighting over the next eight years, more than 14,000 civilians were killed or wounded as a result of the Russian invasion in eastern Ukraine. On 24 February 2022, Russia escalated its conflict with Ukraine by invading the country on several fronts in what has become the largest conventional military attack on a sovereign state in Europe since World War II. The invasion received near-universal international condemnation, and many countries imposed sanctions on Russia and supplied humanitarian and military aid to Ukraine. In September 2022, Russia unilaterally declared its annexation of four Ukrainian oblasts -- Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk, and Zaporizhzhia -- even though none were fully under Russian control. The annexations remain unrecognized by the international community.
Location
North Asia bordering the Arctic Ocean, extending from Eastern Europe (the portion west of the Urals) to the North Pacific Ocean
Area
Elevation
Detailed Geography Information
Coastline
37,653 km
Geography - note
note 1: largest country in the world in terms of area; despite its size, much of the country lacks the soil and climate (either too cold or too dry) for agriculture note 2: Russia's far east, particularly the Kamchatka Peninsula, lies along the Ring of Fire, which is a belt bordering the Pacific Ocean that contains about 75% of the world's volcanoes and up to 90% of the world's earthquakes note 3: Mount El'brus is Europe's tallest peak; Lake Baikal, the deepest lake in the world, is estimated to hold one fifth of the world's fresh surface water note 4: Kaliningrad oblast is an exclave annexed from Germany after World War II; its capital city of Kaliningrad -- formerly Koenigsberg -- is the only Baltic port in Russia that remains ice-free in the winter
Irrigated land
43,000 sq km (2012)
Land boundaries
Major aquifers
Angara-Lena Basin, Pechora Basin, North Caucasus Basin, East European Aquifer System, West Siberian Basin, Tunguss Basin, Yakut Basin
Major lakes (area sq km)
fresh water lake(s): Lake Baikal - 31,500 sq km; Lake Ladoga - 18,130 sq km; Lake Onega - 9,720 sq km; Lake Khanka (shared with China) - 5,010 sq km; Lake Peipus - 4,300 sq km (shared with Estonia); Ozero Vygozero - 1,250 sq km; Ozero Beloye - 1,120 sq km salt water lake(s): Caspian Sea (shared with Iran, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, and Kazakhstan) - 374,000 sq km; Ozero Malyye Chany - 2,500 sq km; Curonian Lagoon (shared with Lithuania) - 1,620 sq km note - the Caspian Sea is the World's largest lake
Major rivers (by length in km)
Yenisey-Angara - 5,539 km; Ob-Irtysh - 5,410 km; Amur river mouth (shared with China [s] and Mongolia) - 4,444 km; Lena - 4,400 km; Volga - 3,645 km; Kolyma - 2,513 km; Ural river source (shared with Kazakhstan [m]) - 2,428 km; Dnepr (Dnieper) river source (shared with Belarus and Ukraine [m]) - 2,287 km; Don - 1,870 km; Pechora - 1,809 km note: [s] after country name indicates river source; [m] after country name indicates river mouth
Major watersheds (area sq km)
Arctic Ocean drainage: Kolyma (679,934 sq km), Lena (2,306,743 sq km), Ob (2,972,493 sq km), Pechora (289,532 sq km), Yenisei (2,554,388 sq km) Atlantic Ocean drainage: (Black Sea) Don (458,694 sq km), Dnieper (533,966 sq km) Pacific Ocean drainage: Amur (1,929,955 sq km) Internal (endorheic basin) drainage: (Caspian Sea basin) Volga (1,410,951 sq km)
Maritime claims
territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
Natural hazards
permafrost over much of Siberia is a major impediment to development; volcanic activity in the Kuril Islands; volcanoes and earthquakes on the Kamchatka Peninsula; spring floods and summer/autumn forest fires in Siberia and parts of European Russia volcanism: Kamchatka Peninsula is home to 29 historically active volcanoes, with dozens more in the Kuril Islands; Kliuchevskoi (4,835 m) is Kamchatka's most active volcano; Avachinsky and Koryaksky volcanoes, which pose a threat to the city of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, have been deemed Decade Volcanoes by the International Association of Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth's Interior, worthy of study due to their explosive history and close proximity to human populations; other notable historically active volcanoes include Bezymianny, Chikurachki, Ebeko, Gorely, Grozny, Karymsky, Ketoi, Kronotsky, Ksudach, Medvezhia, Mutnovsky, Sarychev Peak, Shiveluch, Tiatia, Tolbachik, and Zheltovsky; see note 2 under "Geography - note"
Natural resources
Terrain
broad plain with low hills west of Urals; vast coniferous forest and tundra in Siberia; uplands and mountains along southern border regions
Population & Growth
Age Distribution
Demographic Longevity
Vital Dynamics
Detailed People & Society Information
Alcohol consumption per capita
7.29 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Currently married women (ages 15-49)
57.6% (2021 est.)
Dependency ratios
total dependency ratio: 52.6 (2025 est.) youth dependency ratio: 24.7 (2025 est.) elderly dependency ratio: 27.9 (2025 est.) potential support ratio: 3.6 (2025 est.)
Education expenditure
4.2% of GDP (2023 est.) 14.3% national budget (2018 est.)
Ethnic groups
Gross reproduction rate
0.74 (2025 est.)
Health expenditure
7.4% of GDP (2021) 13.8% of national budget (2022 est.)
Hospital bed density
7 beds/1,000 population (2021 est.)
Infant mortality rate
total: 6.4 deaths/1,000 live births (2025 est.) male: 7.2 deaths/1,000 live births female: 5.8 deaths/1,000 live births
Languages
Literacy
total population: 99.9% (2021 est.) male: 99.9% (2021 est.) female: 99.9% (2021 est.)
Major urban areas - population
12.680 million MOSCOW (capital), 5.561 million Saint Petersburg, 1.695 million Novosibirsk, 1.528 million Yekaterinburg, 1.292 million Kazan, 1.251 million Nizhniy Novgorod (2023)
Maternal mortality ratio
9 deaths/100,000 live births (2023 est.)
Mother's mean age at first birth
25.2 years (2013 est.)
Nationality
noun: Russian(s) adjective: Russian
Obesity - adult prevalence rate
23.1% (2016)
Physician density
5.11 physicians/1,000 population (2022)
Population distribution
population is heavily concentrated in the westernmost fifth of the country, extending from the Baltic Sea south to the Caspian Sea, and eastward parallel to the Kazakh border; elsewhere, sizeable population pockets are isolated and generally found in the south
Refugees and internally displaced persons
Religions
School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education)
total: 15 years (2023 est.) male: 15 years (2023 est.) female: 15 years (2023 est.)
Sex ratio
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female 0-14 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.52 male(s)/female total population: 0.87 male(s)/female (2024 est.)
Tobacco use
total: 26.5% (2025 est.) male: 40.2% (2025 est.) female: 15.1% (2025 est.)
Climate & Issues
ranges from steppes in the south through humid continental in much of European Russia; subarctic in Siberia to tundra climate in the polar north; winters vary from cool along Black Sea coast to frigid in Siberia; summers vary from warm in the steppes to cool along Arctic coast
Land Cover
Air & Carbon Emissions
Water Resources & Use
Detailed Environmental Information
Geoparks
total global geoparks and regional networks: 1 global geoparks and regional networks: Yangan-Tau (2023)
International environmental agreements
Urbanization
urban population: 75.3% of total population (2023) rate of urbanization: 0.11% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
Waste and recycling
municipal solid waste generated annually: 60 million tons (2024 est.) percent of municipal solid waste recycled: 5.3% (2022 est.)
Capital & State Profile
Executive Branch
Legislative Branch
National Identity & Symbols
three equal horizontal bands of white (top), blue, and red
Detailed Government Information
Administrative divisions
46 provinces (oblasti, singular - oblast), 21 republics (respubliki, singular - respublika), 4 autonomous districts (avtonomnyye okrugi, singular - avtonomnyy okrug), 9 federal subjects (kraya, singular - kray), 2 federal cities (goroda, singular - gorod), and 1 autonomous province (avtonomnaya oblast') oblasts: Amur (Blagoveshchensk), Arkhangelsk, Astrakhan, Belgorod, Bryansk, Chelyabinsk, Irkutsk, Ivanovo, Kaliningrad, Kaluga, Kemerovo, Kirov, Kostroma, Kurgan, Kursk, Leningrad (Gatchina), Lipetsk, Magadan, Moscow, Murmansk, Nizhniy Novgorod, Novgorod, Novosibirsk, Omsk, Orenburg, Orel, Penza, Pskov, Rostov, Ryazan, Sakhalin (Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk), Samara, Saratov, Smolensk, Sverdlovsk (Yekaterinburg), Tambov, Tomsk, Tula, Tver, Tyumen, Ulyanovsk, Vladimir, Volgograd, Vologda, Voronezh, Yaroslavl republics: Adygeya (Maykop), Altay (Gorno-Altaysk), Bashkortostan (Ufa), Buryatiya (Ulan-Ude), Chechnya (Groznyy), Chuvashiya (Cheboksary), Dagestan (Makhachkala), Ingushetiya (Magas), Kabardino-Balkariya (Nal'chik), Kalmykiya (Elista), Karachayevo-Cherkesiya (Cherkessk), Kareliya (Petrozavodsk), Khakasiya (Abakan), Komi (Syktyvkar), Mariy-El (Yoshkar-Ola), Mordoviya (Saransk), North Ossetia (Vladikavkaz), Sakha [Yakutiya] (Yakutsk), Tatarstan (Kazan), Tyva (Kyzyl), Udmurtiya (Izhevsk) autonomous districts: Chukotka (Anadyr'), Khanty-Mansi-Yugra (Khanty-Mansiysk), Nenets (Nar'yan-Mar), Yamalo-Nenets (Salekhard) federal subjects: Altay (Barnaul), Kamchatka (Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy), Khabarovsk, Krasnodar, Krasnoyarsk, Perm, Primorskiy [Maritime] (Vladivostok), Stavropol, Zabaykalsk [Transbaikal] (Chita) federal cities: Moscow [Moskva], Saint Petersburg [Sankt-Peterburg] autonomous province: Yevreyskaya [Jewish] (Birobidzhan) note 1: administrative divisions have the same names as their administrative centers; exceptions show the administrative center name in parentheses note 2: the United States does not recognize Russia's annexation or renaming of Ukraine's Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the municipality of Sevastopol; it similarly does not recognize the annexation of the Ukrainian oblasts Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson
Citizenship
citizenship by birth: no citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of Russia dual citizenship recognized: yes residency requirement for naturalization: 3-5 years
Constitution
history: several previous (during Russian Empire and Soviet era); latest drafted 12 July 1993, adopted by referendum 12 December 1993, effective 25 December 1993 amendment process: proposed by the president of the Russian Federation, by either house of the Federal Assembly, by the government of the Russian Federation, or by legislative (representative) bodies of the Federation's constituent entities; proposals to amend the government’s constitutional system, human and civil rights and freedoms, and procedures for amending or drafting a new constitution require formation of a Constitutional Assembly; passage of such amendments requires two-thirds majority vote of its total membership; passage in a referendum requires participation of an absolute majority of eligible voters and an absolute majority of valid votes; approval of proposed amendments to the government structure, authorities, and procedures requires approval by the legislative bodies of at least two thirds of the Russian Federation's constituent entities
Country name
conventional long form: Russian Federation conventional short form: Russia local long form: Rossiyskaya Federatsiya local short form: Rossiya former: Russian Empire, Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic etymology: Russian lands were referred to as Muscovy until PETER I declared the Empire of All Russias in 1721; the new name aimed at identifying the new Russia with European political tradition; "Rus" was the Old Finnish name given to Varangians (eastern Vikings) who entered the area in the 9th century
International law organization participation
has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt
International organization participation
Judicial branch
highest court(s): Supreme Court of the Russian Federation (consists of 170 members organized into the Judicial Panel for Civil Affairs, the Judicial Panel for Criminal Affairs, and the Military Panel); Constitutional Court (consists of 11 members, including the chairperson and deputy) judge selection and term of office: all members of Russia's 3 highest courts nominated by the president and appointed by the Federation Council (the upper house of the legislature); members of all 3 courts appointed for life subordinate courts: regional (kray) and provincial (oblast) courts; Moscow and St. Petersburg city courts; autonomous province and district courts (the 21 Russian republics have court systems specified by their own constitutions)
Legal system
civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts
National heritage
total World Heritage Sites: 33 (22 cultural, 11 natural) selected World Heritage Site locales: Historic Centre of Saint Petersburg and Related Groups of Monuments (c); Kizhi Pogost (c); Kremlin and Red Square, Moscow (c); Historic Monuments of Novgorod and Surroundings (c); White Monuments of Vladimir and Suzdal (c); Architectural Ensemble of the Trinity Sergius Lavra in Sergiev Posad (c); Church of the Ascension, Kolomenskoye (c); Lake Baikal (n); Volcanoes of Kamchatka (n); Ensemble of the Ferapontov Monastery (c); Historic and Architectural Complex of the Kazan Kremlin (c); Citadel, Ancient City and Fortress Buildings of Derbent (c); Uvs Nuur Basin (n); Ensemble of the Novodevichy Convent (c); Natural System of Wrangel Island Reserve (n); Historical Centre of the City of Yaroslavl (c); Lena Pillars Nature Park (n); Bolgar Historical and Archaeological Complex (c); Assumption Cathedral and Monastery of the town-island of Sviyazhsk (c); Churches of the Pskov School of Architecture (c); Petroglyphs of Lake Onega and the White Sea (c); Rock Paintings of Shulgan-Tash Cave (c)
Political parties
A Just Russia for Truth or SRZP Civic Platform or CP Communists of Russia or CPCR Communist Party of the Russian Federation or CPRF Cossack Party of the Russian Federation or CosPRF Democratic Party of Russia or DPR Green Alternative or GA Liberal Democratic Party of Russia or LDPR New People or NP Party for Fairness! or PARZAS! Party of Direct Democracy or PDD Party of Progress or PP Party of Pensioners or RPPSJ Party of Russia's Rebirth or PRR Party of Social Protection or PSP Rodina Russian Ecological Party or The Greens Russian Party of Freedom and Justice or RPFJ Russia United Democratic Party or Yabloko United Russia or UR
Suffrage
18 years of age; universal
Economic Overview
natural resource-rich Eurasian economy; leading energy exporter to Europe and Asia; decreased oil export reliance; endemic corruption, Ukrainian invasion, and lack of green infrastructure limit investment and have led to sanctions
Size & Performance
GDP Sector Breakdown
Trade Balance
Budget Balance
Export Profile
Top Export Partners
Major Export Commodities
Import Profile
Top Import Partners
Major Import Commodities
Labor & Employment
Income Inequality
Family Income / Consumption Share
Detailed Economic Data
Agricultural products
Current account balance
$62.287 billion (2024 est.) $49.439 billion (2023 est.) $237.735 billion (2022 est.) note: balance of payments - net trade and primary/secondary income in current dollars
Debt - external
$135.301 billion (2022 est.) note: present value of external debt in current US dollars
Exchange rates
Russian rubles (RUB) per US dollar - Exchange rates: 85.162 (2023 est.) 68.485 (2022 est.) 73.654 (2021 est.) 72.105 (2020 est.) 64.738 (2019 est.)
GDP - composition, by end use
Industrial production growth rate
4.1% (2024 est.) note: annual % change in industrial value added based on constant local currency
Industries
Inflation rate (consumer prices)
6.7% (2021 est.) 3.4% (2020 est.) 4.5% (2019 est.) note: annual % change based on consumer prices
Public debt
18.5% of GDP (2023 est.) note: central government debt as a % of GDP
Remittances
0.1% of GDP (2024 est.) 0.1% of GDP (2023 est.) 0.1% of GDP (2022 est.) note: personal transfers and compensation between resident and non-resident individuals/households/entities
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold
$597.217 billion (2023 est.) $581.71 billion (2022 est.) $632.242 billion (2021 est.) note: holdings of gold (year-end prices)/foreign exchange/special drawing rights in current dollars
Taxes and other revenues
12.1% (of GDP) (2023 est.) note: central government tax revenue as a % of GDP
Grid Infrastructure
Generation Mix
Fossil Fuels Production
Intensity & Nuclear
Digital Access
Active internet users as a percentage of the total population.
Fixed Broadband
Mobile Cellular
Broadcast Media
Aviation
Railways
Ports & Harbors
Merchant Marine
Military Expenditures
Active Duty Strengths
estimated 1.1-1.2 million active Armed Forces; estimated 350,000 Federal National Guard Troops (2025) note: in September 2024, President PUTIN ordered the Russian military to increase in size to 1.5 million personnel
Service & Defense Details
Armed Forces of the Russian Federation: Ground Forces (SV), Aerospace Forces (VKS), Navy (VMF); separate or independent troop branches include the Airborne Forces (VDV), Missile Troops of Strategic Purpose (RVSN; commonly to as Strategic Rocket Forces), Special Operations Forces, and Unmanned Systems Forces Federal National Guard Troops Service of the Russian Federation (FSVNG, National Guard, Russian Guard, or Rosgvardiya) Federal Security Services (FSB): Federal Border Guard Service (includes land and maritime forces) (2025) note 1: the National Guard was created in 2016 as an independent agency for internal/regime security, combating terrorism and narcotics trafficking, protecting important state facilities and government personnel, and supporting border security; it also works closely with the Armed Forces; forces under the National Guard include the Special Purpose Mobile Units (OMON), Special Rapid Response Detachment (SOBR), and Interior Troops (VV) note 2: the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Federal Security Service, Investigative Committee, Office of the Prosecutor General, and National Guard are responsible for law enforcement; the Federal Security Service is responsible for state security, counterintelligence, and counterterrorism, as well as for fighting organized crime and corruption; the Ministry of Internal Affairs includes the national police force
estimated 600,000 in Ukraine; more than 20,000 additional military personnel deployed in former Soviet states and elsewhere, including Armenia, Belarus, Georgia, Kyrgyzstan, Libya, Moldova, Syria, sub-Saharan Africa, and Tajikistan (2025) note: Russia is also assessed to have thousands of paramilitary security personnel and private military contractors deployed in Africa, including in Burkina Faso, Central African Republic, Libya, Mali, Niger, and Sudan
the Russian Federation's military and paramilitary services are equipped with domestically produced weapons systems, although in recent years Russia has imported military hardware from external suppliers such as Iran and North Korea to support its war on Ukraine; the Russian defense industry is capable of producing a full range of advanced air, land, missile, and naval systems; Russia is one of the world's largest exporters of military hardware (2025)
the Russian military is responsible for protecting the country's sovereignty and territorial integrity, providing maritime security, and supporting Moscow's national security objectives, including projecting influence and power abroad and deterring perceived external threats; its missions include air, land, maritime, strategic missile, and expeditionary operations; it is also active in the areas of cyber warfare, electronic warfare, and space; the Russian military's focus is its ongoing war on Ukraine and the perceived threat from NATO and the US in February 2022, Russia launched a full-scale military invasion of Ukraine, beginning what is the largest war in Europe since World War II ended in 1945; Russian military forces occupied Ukraine’s province of Crimea in 2014, and Moscow subsequently backed separatist forces in the Donbas region of Ukraine with arms, equipment, and training, as well as Russian military troops, although Moscow denied their presence prior to 2022 Russia intervened in the Syrian civil war at the request of the Syrian Government from September 2015 until the collapse of the ASAD regime in December 2024; it was Moscow’s first overseas military expeditionary operation since the Soviet era; Russian assistance included air support, arms and equipment, intelligence, military advisors, private military contractors, special operations forces, and training; Russia seized the Georgian regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia by force in 2008 (2025)
18-30 years of age for compulsory service for men; 18-65 years of age for voluntary/contractual service; women and non-Russian citizens (18-30) may volunteer; minimum 12-month service obligation (2025) note 1: in 2022, Russia removed the previous upper age limit of 30 for contractual service in the military; that same year, began drafting dual-national Russians and those with permanent residency status in foreign countries for military service note 2: since 2015, foreigners 18-30 with a good command of Russian have been allowed to join the military on five-year contracts and become eligible for Russian citizenship after serving three years; in 2022, Russia began recruiting foreigners for one-year service contracts with armed forces participating in the invasion of Ukraine with the promise of simplifying the process of obtaining Russian citizenship
Space Agency
State Space Corporation of the Russian Federation (Roscosmos; established 2015); Russian Space Forces (Kosmicheskie voyska Rossii, KV; under the Russian Aerospace Forces) (2025) note 1: Russia’s space strategy is defined jointly by Roscosmos and the Ministry of Defense note 2: Roscosmos was established from a merger of the Federal Space Agency and the state-owned United Rocket and Space Corporation; it began as the Russian Space Agency (RSA or RKA) in 1992 and restructured in 1999 and 2004 as the Russian Aviation and Space Agency and then the Federal Space Agency