About Russia
Russia is a vast nation stretching from the North Pacific to Poland . Many people envision Russia as being entirely composed of empty tundra and endless steppes; however the new country has entered the 21 st century with a bang and is continuing to re-identify itself and its traditions. To help you learn some more about this intriguing nation we have provided some brief outline information about Russia below.
Please be advised that the information and data contained below is meant for reference purposes only and is subject to change without warning. For the most current information about Russia please consult an expert.
Official Name: Russian Federation , or simply Russia . The country was formerly known as the USSR or the United Socialist Soviet Republic and the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic .
Capital: The capital of Russia is Moscow , which is also the country's biggest city. Moscow has been continuously inhabited since 1147, and after the establishment of the Principality of Muscovy, Moscow continues to be one of the most influential cities in the world. Currently Moscow has more billionaires than any other city in the world.
Location : Russia spans the Eurasian super continent. The eastern part of the country borders on the north pacific and China , and in the winter it is possible to pass from Russia across the Bering Sea to Alaska . The Western region of the country shares land borders with Ukraine, Belarus, Estonia, Finland, Georgia, Azerbaijan, and Latvia. The Western most portion of the country, Kaliningrad also borders on Poland . The remaining land borders are with Kazakhstan , Mongolia , China , North Korea , and Norway . The parts of the country located west of the Ural Mountains are considered to be in Europe and those that are east of the Urals are considered to be in Asia .
Size: Russia is the largest country in the world in terms of size, and occupies a total area of approximately 17,072,200 square kilometers. The country is almost double the size of the USA .
Climate: As Russia is such a large country the climate conditions can be extremely diverse. European Russia tends to experience a humid and continental climate, as does the parts of the country in the far east. Central Russia is characterized by large tundra plains (known as Steppes) and can be extremely hot in the summer and freezing in the winter. Siberia experiences some of the most dramatic temperature changes in the world and the average temperature can fluctuate by +/- 40 0 Celsius in a single day.
Population: Russia has a total population of 142,499,000 million people. This means that Russia is the 9 th most populated country in the world; however, due to the country's large geographical size the nation only ranks 209 th for population density, making it one of the least densely populated places on earth.
Life expectancy at birth: There is an average life expectancy in Russia of 65.87 years. Women are expected to live for an average of 73.03 years while men will only typically live until the age of 59.
Prevalence of HIV/AIDS: Approximately 1.1% of the Russian population is living with HIV/Aids. This means that there are an estimated 860,000 people in Russia with the disease and that approximately 9,000 people die from HIV/Aids every year.
Major illnesses: There are a number of health risks throughout the Russian Federation which include disease threats from Diphtheria, Hepatitis, Rabies, and Typhoid. The major health concern in the country comes from the many severe weather conditions prevalent throughout the nation.
Ethnic Groups: There are a number of diverse ethnic groups that all identify as being Russian. In terms of overall population percentages these are ethnic Russian (79.8%), Tartar (3.8%), Ukrainian (2%), Bashkir (1.2%), Chuvash (1.1%), Other or individuals of an unspecified ethnicity (12.1%).
Languages: The official language in the country is Russian. However, due to the nation's extremely varied geography there are a plethora of regional dialects and minority languages.
Religion: The major religion in Russia is the Russian Orthodox practice of Christianity (15 -20% of the total population). There are however a number of other religions that are practiced in the country and the two other main ones are Muslim (10 – 15%) and Christian (2%). It is important to note that due to the many years of communist rule in Russia many people do not practice any religion at all.
Government: Russia practices a Federative government. This is extremely similar to Federalism whereby a central government is created to unite a number of semi-autonomous regions or states. Federations can be multiethnic and incorporate a number of separate nation-states; however they are usually founded around an original constitution. Federations, like federal governments, are considered to be the opposite of unitary states.
Head of State: President Vladimir Putin is the Russian head of state.
Head of Government: The head of the Russian government is Premier Viktor Zubkov.
Military: Russia has one of the largest military forces in the world and is one of the strongest nuclear powers on the planet. There is a mandatory conscription for all Russian males aged 18-27 years of at least 2 years in length.
Economy : Russia has entered the 21 st century with a number of years of record growth. With an economy that is centered around the nations vast oil reserves the Russian market has exploded due to large amounts of foreign investment and a developing middle class. This has raised the value of the Russian currency and has allowed Russia to compete with the major European markets and has raised the overall level of confidence in the Russian market. While there still are major issues, such as high levels of corruption and extreme poverty in the country, Russia is beginning to show its true potential as one of the most powerful economies in the world, a fact which the nations many billionaires can readily attest to.
GDP: Russia has a purchasing power GDP of US $1.746 trillion and an actual GDP of US$733.6 billion, this is expected to increase by approximately 6% annually making Russia one of the fastest developing nations in the world.
For more information about the quality plans that we can offer in Russia, or to receive a free quote, please contact one of our expert advisers today.
For more information about Russia, the international health insurance plans that we can offer there, or to receive a free quote, please contact one of our expert advisers today.