WPS, March 7

Russian Federation

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovskii

Geography

The official name for Russia is the Russian Federation.

Federation is a group of states with a central government but independence in internal affairs. There are 83 states (federal subjects in Russian Federation)

Constitution of Russia is the land of the law in the country.

The head of the state in Russia is the president.

The head of the government is the Prime Minister.

The government has two houses: upper (Federation Council) and lower (Parliament, known as "Duma").
Russia is the largest country in the world (in territory).
Russia is located across 11 time zones.
At the beginning of 2013, Russia was estimated to have a population of around 143 million.
Russian is the official language of Russia but there are around 180 languages used in various parts of the country.
The capital and largest city in Russia is Moscow.
Russians drive on the right-hand side of the road.
The currency used in Russia is the ruble.
Russia has a wide range of natural resources and is one of the world’s largest producers of oil.
The world’s first satellite, named Sputnik, was launched by the Soviet Union in 1957.
The first man in space was Yuryi Gagarin. On April 12, 1961 he was the first human to orbit the Earth.
The Soviet Union (USSR) was a socialist state that occupied much of northern Asia and eastern Europe from 1922 until it was dissolved in 1991. Former Soviet states include Lithuania, Georgia, Latvia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan and others.
Lake Baikal is the largest freshwater lake in the world. It reaches 1642 metres (5,387 feet) in depth and contains around 20% of the world’s unfrozen fresh water.
Mount Elbrus is the highest mountain in Russia (and Europe), it reaches a height of 5642 metres (18,510 feet).