Russia and the Republics

Russia is Huge!

Climate

The Steppes

e25% of the old Soviet Union’s food supply.

Major Regional Divisions of the Former U. S. S. R.

Chernozen Soil

The Ural Mountains

The Volga River

eThe river is so polluted that the sturgeon catch has been decreased by 60%.

Lake Baikal, Siberia

eThe oldest and deepest lake in the world.e 20% of the world’s total unfrozen water supply.

Siberia --> Permafrost

eAverage temperatures of January vary from 0 to -50°C, and in July from 1 to 25°C

e 150,000,000 population.e A former “gulag” Soviet prison camp.

Tundra: The Not-So-Barren LandBelow the Arctic Circle

Trans-Siberian Railroad

eCompleted in 1905.

Trans-Siberian Railroad

eThe main line runs 5,785 miles.

A land of 10 time zones!

Eastern Bloc

Union of Soviet Socialist Republics15 Republics: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Estonia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan

7 SatelliteCountries:Bulgaria, Czech Republic, East Germany, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Slovakia

The Collapse

Remaining Communist Countries• At its peak, communism was practiced in dozens of countries:• Soviet Union: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Estonia, Georgia, Kazakhstan,

Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan

• Asian Countries: Afghanistan, Cambodia, Mongolia, and Yemen • Soviet Controlled Eastern bloc countries: Bulgaria, Czech Republic, East

Germany, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Slovakia. • The Balkans: Albania, Bosnia, Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Macedonia,

Montenegro, Serbia, and Slovenia. • Africa: Angola, Benin, Congo, Ethiopia, Somalia, Eritrea, and Mozambique.• Currently only a handful of countries identified as communist remain: Laos,

North Korea, Vietnam, China, and Cuba.