| Area Total | 17,098,242 sq km |
| Climate | 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 |
| Natural Resources | wide natural resource base including major deposits of oil, natural gas, coal, and many strategic minerals, bauxite, reserves of rare earth elements, timber |
| Imports | China 21.2%, Germany 10.7%, US 5.6%, Belarus 5%, Italy 4.5%, France 4.2% (2017) – machinery, vehicles, pharmaceutical products, plastic, semi-finished metal products, meat, fruits and nuts, optical and medical instruments, iron, steel |
| Government | semi-presidential federation |
| Capital | Moscow |
| Population | 142.1 million (July 2018 est.) |
| Ethnicity | Russian 77.7%, Tatar 3.7%, Ukrainian 1.4%, Bashkir 1.1%, Chuvash 1%, Chechen 1%, other 10.2%, unspecified 3.9% (2010 est.) |
| Language | Russian (official) 85.7%, Tatar 3.2%, Chechen 1%, other 10.1% (2010 est.) |
| Exports | China 10.9%, Netherlands 10%, Germany 7.1%, Belarus 5.1%, Turkey 4.9% (2017) – petroleum and petroleum products, natural gas, metals, wood and wood products, chemicals, and a wide variety of civilian and military manufactures |
News about Russia
- ‘Nothing short of delightful’. How a corruption scandal and power struggle in the Z-blogosphere could paralyze the Russian military’s grassroots funding pipeline
by Meduza.io on September 17, 2025In a society that no longer tolerates public criticism of the state’s military policies, why are Russia’s “Z-bloggers” allowed to publish speech that would land others behind bars? Journalist Ivan Filippov, who monitors pro-invasion Telegram channels, argues that Z-bloggers enjoy special treatment because the army relies on their fundraising […]
- Russia developing Starlink rival – space chief
by RT (RT Russia & Former Soviet Union) on September 17, 2025The first satellites providing nationwide internet access will be launched in December, Roscosmos head Dmitry Bakanov has said Read Full Article at RT.com
- WATCH Russian submarine hunters carry out bombing drills
by RT (RT Russia & Former Soviet Union) on September 17, 2025IL-38 planes have carried out strikes on ground targets during Pacific Fleet maneuvers Read Full Article at RT.com
- An Australian is representing the U.S. at Russia’s Eurovision rival. After the announcement, her LGBTQ advocacy briefly vanished from Wikipedia.by Meduza.io on September 17, 2025
American singer Brandon Howard has withdrawn from Russia’s Intervision song contest just days before it begins, with Australian-born dance artist Vassy named as his replacement. Shortly after the announcement, journalists noted that references to her queer rights advocacy had briefly been removed from her Wikipedia page — an apparent attempt […]
- Baltic state digs anti-tank ditch on Russian border – media
by RT (RT Russia & Former Soviet Union) on September 17, 2025Estonia has reportedly started building large-scale fortifications despite conceding there is no immediate military threat Read Full Article at RT.com
- Dmitry Kozak, only senior Russian official thought to oppose the war, reportedly resigns as Kremlin deputy chief of staffby Meduza.io on September 17, 2025
Vladimir Putin’s Deputy Chief of Staff Dmitry Kozak has submitted his resignation, RBC reported, citing two sources.
- Putin in uniform, U.S. observers, and Z-bloggers’ reactions. Key takeaways from Russia and Belarus’s Zapad-2025 war gamesby Meduza.io on September 17, 2025
From September 12–15, Russian and Belarusian forces conducted joint military exercises under the banner of Zapad-2025. The drills marked the first in the Zapad series since the fall of 2021, when Moscow used the exercises to begin massing troops along its western border — setting the stage for its invasion of Ukraine the following February. […]
- Russia’s State Duma votes to withdraw from European Convention against Tortureby Meduza.io on September 17, 2025
The Russian State Duma has voted to withdraw from the European Convention for the Prevention of Torture, Interfax reported.
- Zelensky has no intention of ending conflict with Moscow – MP
by RT (RT Russia & Former Soviet Union) on September 17, 2025The Ukrainian leader wants “to fight to the last but with others doing the fighting,” Georgy Mazurashu has said Read Full Article at RT.com
- Zelensky ready to meet Putin without preconditions except one
by RT (RT Russia & Former Soviet Union) on September 17, 2025Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky says he is ready to hold talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin but has rejected Moscow as the venue Read Full Article at RT.com
- Two senior Ukrainian commanders fired over battlefield losses – media
by RT (RT Russia & Former Soviet Union) on September 17, 2025Top general Aleksandr Syrsky reportedly made the dismissals in light of recent Russian advances Read Full Article at RT.com
- Nearly one in five Russians unable to make loan payments, survey findsby Meduza.io on September 17, 2025
About one in five Russians — 22 percent — are unable to make their loan payments, Vedomosti reported, citing a survey by the International Confederation of Consumer Societies.
- FSB detains North African ‘recruited by Kiev for spying’ (VIDEO)
by RT (RT Russia & Former Soviet Union) on September 17, 2025The suspect passed information on military sites and critical infrastructure to Ukrainian intelligence, the FSB has said Read Full Article at RT.com
- Zelensky tells West to put Ukraine first
by RT (RT Russia & Former Soviet Union) on September 17, 2025The Ukrainian leader has slammed the EU and US for their reluctance to impose more sanctions on Russia Read Full Article at RT.com
- Western ‘peacekeepers’ in Ukraine would be seen as occupiers – Lavrov
by RT (RT Russia & Former Soviet Union) on September 17, 2025Moscow has long warned it would treat any foreign troops fighting alongside the Kiev regime as legitimate military targets Read Full Article at RT.com
- ‘Vladimir Putin is responsible for the murder of my husband’. Navalny’s team obtained evidence he was poisoned in Arctic prison, widow saysby Meduza.io on September 17, 2025
After Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny died in a prison in Kharp, in Russia’s Far North, on February 16, 2024, his team managed to secure samples of his biological material and send them abroad to laboratories in two Western countries. Tests confirmed that Navalny had been poisoned, his widow, Yulia Navalnaya, announced on Wednesday.
- Lavrov accuses Kiev of ‘sabotaging’ US peace efforts
by RT (RT Russia & Former Soviet Union) on September 17, 2025Kiev has rejected Washington’s assessments following the Trump-Putin summit in Alaska, the Russian foreign minister has said Read Full Article at RT.com
- ‘No place’ for EU in Ukraine talks – Lavrov
by RT (RT Russia & Former Soviet Union) on September 17, 2025The bloc has embraced “revanchism” and is seeking to inflict a strategic defeat on Russia, the foreign minister has said Read Full Article at RT.com
- Putin signs off on Europe’s largest ever high-speed rail project
by RT (RT Russia & Former Soviet Union) on September 17, 2025The new transportation network will span 4,500km and use domestically produced trains capable of reaching 400kph Read Full Article at RT.com
- Zelensky ‘losing touch with reality’ – Foreign Policy analysis
by RT (RT Russia & Former Soviet Union) on September 17, 2025Recent policy mistakes related to the military and civil governance triggered significant public backlash, the outlet has reported Read Full Article at RT.com
- Dozens of trains delayed in Ukraine after Russia attacks railway system overnightby Meduza.io on September 17, 2025
Russian troops carried out a strike on Ukraine’s railway system on Tuesday night, Ukrainian state rail operator Ukrzaliznytsia reported. According to the company, Russia targeted electrical substations in what it described as a “complex attack.”
- Malfunctioning missile fired from F-16 fell on Polish house during Russian drone incursion, Polish media reportby Meduza.io on September 17, 2025
A house in Poland that was damaged during a Russian drone incursion was hit not by drone debris, but by an air-to-air missile fired from an F-16 fighter jet, according to the Polish newspaper Rzeczpospolita, which cited “state agencies responsible for national security.”
- Zelensky reveals major change in Ukrainian troop training
by RT (RT Russia & Former Soviet Union) on September 17, 2025Ukraine no longer needs to train its soldiers abroad, Vladimir Zelensky has said Read Full Article at RT.com
- Central Asian state cracks down on ‘bride kidnapping’
by RT (RT Russia & Former Soviet Union) on September 17, 2025Kazakhstan has made forced marriage criminal offence with prison terms up to ten years under new legal reforms Read Full Article at RT.com
- Putin names purpose of Russia-Belarus drills
by RT (RT Russia & Former Soviet Union) on September 16, 2025The Russia-Belarus Zapad 2025 military exercises were designed with the Ukraine conflict in mind, President Vladimir Putin has said Read Full Article at RT.com
- French cyclist Sofiane Sehili likely to be imprisoned for illegal border crossing while attempting ultra-distance recordby Meduza.io on September 16, 2025
French ultra-distance cyclist Sofiane Sehili remains jailed in Vladivostok on charges of illegally crossing Russia’s border after attempting to break the world record for the fastest bicycle crossing of Eurasia. The 44-year-old athlete was arrested in early September, just 200 kilometers (124 miles) from his intended finish line. Russian authorities […]
- A small victory for ultranationalists . Russia’s latest elections deliver predictable wins for Kremlin-backed candidates, and a new runner-upby Meduza.io on September 16, 2025
This past weekend, Russians went to the polls for the country’s so-called unified voting day (which, in practice, lasts for three days). The elections brought predictable wins for Kremlin-backed candidates. And with some help from Putin’s administration, the ultranationalist Liberal Democratic Party of Russia (LDPR) edged out the Communist Party […]
- ‘I’d rather pay taxes to NATO’. Russian IT worker reportedly quits with mass email wishing death to enlisted coworker and saying he’s moving to Franceby Meduza.io on September 16, 2025
An IT worker from the Moscow region reportedly sent a mass anti-war farewell email to his colleagues upon quitting, declaring that he was moving to France because he would “rather pay taxes to NATO than to the special military operation.”
- Missiles of desperation: Inside Ukraine’s last-ditch weapons gamble
by RT (RT Russia & Former Soviet Union) on September 16, 2025From Soviet labs to foreign cash, Kiev is racing to build rockets before Russia shuts the program down for good Read Full Article at RT.com
- E.U. refuses to lift sanctions from Russian defense exec’s daughter, citing her appearance in calendar with Nicole Kidman and Uma Thurmanby Meduza.io on September 16, 2025
The stepdaughter of Sergey Chemezov, who heads the Russian defense conglomerate Rostec, has asked the E.U. to remove her from its sanctions list, which she’s been on since 2022. According to the outlet Sistema, however, E.U. officials have denied the request, citing her 2017 appearance in the prestigious Pirelli calendar as evidence that she’s […]
