envierment

Crimea annexed in 2014

Russia and the Post-Soviet States

The Soviet Union, officially known as

the Union of Soviet Socialist

Republics (USSR), was a federal

sovereign state in northern Eurasia

that existed from 1922 to 1991.

Location of Russia

Russia makes up 76.6% of the total territory of the former

USSR (17,075,400 km²).

1.Armenia 2. Azerbaijan

3. Belarus 4. Estonia

5. Georgia 6. Kazakhstan

7. Kyrgyzstan 8. Latvia

9. Lithuania 10. Moldova

11. Russia 12. Tajikistan

13. Turkmenistan 14. Ukraine

15. Uzbekistan

Post-Soviet States: https://worldpopulationreview.com/countries

The largest country in the world is Russia with a total area of

17,098,242 Km² (6,601,665 mi²) and a land area of 16,376,870

Km² (6,323,142 mi²), equivalent to 11% of the total world's landmass of 148,940,000 Km² (57,510,000 square miles).

https://www.worldometers.info/geography/largest-countries-in-the-world/

Continent

Area Population

km2 sq mi % of total

land 2021

estimate % of total

Europe 10,000,000 3,900,000 6.8% 750 million 9.8%

European Russia comprising roughly

3,960,000 sq. km (1,528,560 sq. miles)

and spans across approximately 40% of Europe.

History of Russia Prehistory • Antiquity • Early Slavs

Rus' people pre–9th century

Rus' Khaganate c. 830–899 879–1240: Ancient Rus‘

Novgorod Land 882–1136

Principality of Polotsk 987–1397

Principality of Chernigov 988–1402

Rostov-Suzdal 1093–1157

Principality of Kiev 1132–1471

1240–1480: Feudal Rus'

Novgorod Republic 1136–1478

Vladimir-Suzdal 1157–1331

Grand Duchy of Moscow 1263–1547

1480–1917: Tsarist Russia

Tsardom of Russia 1547–1721

Russian Empire 1721–1917 1917–1923: Russian Revolution

Russian Republic 1917–1918

Soviet Russia 1917–1922

Russian State 1918–1920

1923–1991: Soviet Era

Soviet Union 1922–1991

Russian SFSR 1922–1991

Karelo-Finnish SSR 1940–1956

since 1991: Modern Russia

Russian Federation 1991–present

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Russia The traditional start-date of specifically Russian history is the

establishment of the medieval state of Kievan Rus in 862 under

the leadership of the Varangian Prince Rurik.

The Tale of Bygone Years, often known in English as the Rus'

Primary Chronicle, the Russian Primary Chronicle, or simply

the Primary Chronicle, as well as also, after the author it has

traditionally been ascribed to, Nestor's Chronicle, is an Old East

Slavic chronicle of Kievan Rus' from about 850 to 1110, originally

compiled in Kiev around 1113.

The traditional start-date of specifically Russian history is the establishment of the medieval state of Kievan Rus, a loose federation of East Slavic, Baltic and Finnic peoples in Eastern and Northern Europe. According to the 12th-century Kievan Primary Chronicle, a group of Varangians known as the Rus settled in Novgorod in 862 under the leadership

of the Varangian Prince Rurik. In 882 Prince Oleg of Novgorod seized Kiev, thereby uniting the northern and southern lands of the Eastern Slavs under one authority. The state adopted Christianity from the Byzantine Empire in 988, beginning the synthesis of Byzantine and Slavic cultures that defined Russian culture for the next millennium.

The Rurik dynasty would continue to rule parts of Rus' until the 16th century with the Tsardom of Russia. The state began to decline during the late 11th century and the 12th century, disintegrating into various rival regional powers. It was further weakened by economic factors, such as the collapse of Rus' commercial ties to the Byzantine Empire due to the decline of Constantinople and the accompanying diminution of trade routes through its territory. The state finally fell to the Mongol invasion in 1237–1240. The modern nations of Belarus, Russia, and Ukraine all claim Kievan Rus' as their cultural ancestors.

Russian Roots https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Russia

The East Slavs emerged as a recognizable group in Europe

between the 3rd and 8th centuries AD. Between 839 and

1043 the Balto Slavs combined with the South Slavic

peoples to form a new society. The name Rus' came to

mean those combined peoples.

The conquests of Genghis Khan

Date 1237–1242

Location Modern Russia, Ukraine and

Belarus

Result Decisive Mongol victory

resulting in principalities of

Kievan State

becoming vassals of

the Mongol Golden Horde.

■ The Mongol Invasion As part of the Mongol invasion of Europe, the Mongol Empire invaded Kievan Rus' in the

13th century, destroying numerous cities, including Ryazan, Kolomna, Moscow, Vladimir

and Kiev. The campaign was heralded by the Battle of the Kalka River in May 1223, which

resulted in a Mongol victory over the forces of several Rus' principalities. The Mongols

nevertheless retreated. A full-scale invasion of Rus' by Batu Khan followed, from 1237 to

1242. The invasion was ended by the Mongol succession process upon the death of Ögedei

Khan. All Rus' principalities were forced to submit to Mongol rule and became part of

the Golden Horde empire, some of which lasted until 1480.

The invasion, facilitated by the beginning of the breakup of Kievan Rus' in the 13th century,

had incalculable ramifications for the history of Eastern Europe, including the division of

the East Slavic people into three separate nations: modern-day Russia, Ukraine

and Belarus, and the rise of the Grand Duchy of Moscow.

Russian Roots

Russian Roots

■ Czarist Russia • The formation of a large continental empire.

■ Colonialism outside the Russian core: • Overland expansion instead of maritime expansion.

• Annexed and incorporated many nationalities and cultures.

• Russia controlled as much as 100 different nationalities.

• Foundation of St. Petersburg, a forward capital (1703):

• A symbolic relocation of a capital city.

• Developed as Russia’s leading port for trade.

• Conquest of Muslim areas in the Caucasus and Central Asia.

• Southern expansion halted by the Turks and the British.

• Vladivostok founded in 1860.

• Threatened Japan and sparked war in 1904.

• Defeated by Japan, losing some territory.

In development of the Third Rome ideas,

the Grand Duke Ivan IV (the "Terrible") was officially

crowned first Tsar ("Caesar") of Russia in 1547.

Ivan III ("the Great") [Reign: 28 March 1462 – 27 October 1505] finally threw off the control of

the Golden Horde and consolidated the whole of Central and Northern Rus' under Moscow's

dominion. He was also the first to take the title "Grand Duke of all the Russias". After the

fall of Constantinople in 1453, Moscow claimed succession to the legacy of the Eastern

Roman Empire.

Ivan the Terrible, Ivan

Grozny; "Ivan the

Formidable" or "Ivan

the Fearsome"), was

the Grand Prince of

Moscow from 1533 to

1547 and the first Tsar

of Russia from 1547 to

1584.

■ Trans-Siberian Railroad and occupation of Manchuria: The Russian invasion of Manchuria occurred in the aftermathof

the First Sino-Japanese War (1894–1895) when concerns regarding

China's defeat by the Japanese and the latter's occupation of

Manchuria caused the Russians to speed up their long held designs

for imperial expansion acrossEurasia.

Ivan III Vasilyevich (22 January 1440, Moscow – 27 October 1505, Moscow), also known as Ivan the Great, was a Grand Prince of Moscow and Grand Prince of all Rus'. Ivan served as the co-ruler and regent for his blind father Vasily II from the mid-1450s before he officially ascended the throne in 1462.

•Vasily II the Dark (February 17, 1447—March 27, 1462)

•Ivan III the Great (March 27, 1462—October 27, 1505)

•Vasili III (October 27, 1505—December 4, 1533)

•Ivan IV the Terrible (December 4, 1533—January 16, 1547)

■ Grand Duchy of Moscow (Moscovy)

• Formation of the modern Russian state (1462).

■ Three centuries of territorial growth • Was a military power in nearly constant warfare.

• Was an imperial state with centralized administrative control.

■ Cossacks • Semi-nomadic group mainly responsible for the settling of the Russian Far East from

the 16th century.

• Pacific was reached by the mid 17th century.

• Moved into Alaska in the late 18th century(1784).

• Settled north of San Francisco (1812).

• Expansion in the Volga basin.

• Fall of Kazan (1552), held by the Tatars.

Kazan is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Tatarstan, Russia, in southwest

Russia, on the banks of the Volga and Kazanka rivers. With a population of 1,243,500,

it is the sixth most populous city in Russia.

In 1438, the city became the capital of the Khanate of Kazan. In 1552, Kazan was

captured by Ivan the Terrible and became part of Russia.

a group of predominantly East Slavic-

• Expanded mainly through sparsely populated Siberia. speaking people who becameknown

as members of democratic, self-

governing, semi-military communities,

predominantly located in Southern

Russia in the steppes of Russia, as

well as in Eastern and Southern

Ukraine within the borders of

the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth.

Forward Capital

Capital city positioned in actually or potentially contested territory,

usually near an international border, confirming the state’s

determination to maintain its presence in the region

It was founded by Tsar Peter the Great on 27 May [O.S. 16 May] 1703 and served as a capital of Russian Tsardom and subsequent Russian Empire in 1713-1918 (being replaced by Moscow for a short period of time in 1728- 1730). After the October Revolution, Bolsheviks moved their government to Moscow.

Saint Petersburg, known as Petrograd (1914–1924), and later Leningrad (1924–1991), is a Russian port city on the Baltic Sea. It is Russia's second-largest city after Moscow.

Outer Manchuria is the light red region outside the border of China.

Outer Manchuria, alternatively called Outer Northeast

China or Russian Manchuria, refers to a territory

in Northeast Asia that is currently part of Russia and had

formerly belonged to a series of Chinese dynasties,

including the Tang, Liao, Jin, Eastern Xia, Yuan, Northern

Yuan, Ming, Later Jin, and Qing dynasties. It is considered

part of the larger region of Manchuria. The Russian

Empire annexed this territory from Qing China by way of

the Treaty of Aigun in 1858 and the Treaty of Peking in

1860. The northern part of the area was disputed by Qing

China and the Russian Empire between 1643 and 1689.

Outer Manchuria comprises the modern-day Russian

areas of Primorsky Krai, southern Khabarovsk Krai,

the Jewish Autonomous Oblast, the Amur Oblast and the

island of Sakhalin.

The Treaty of Nerchinsk signed in 1689 after a series of

conflicts, defined the Sino–Russian border as

the Stanovoy Mountains and the Argun River, making

Outer Manchuria a part of Qing China. After losing

the Opium Wars, Qing China was forced to sign a series of

treaties that gave away territories and ports to the

imperialist Western powers as well as to Russia and

Japan; these were known as the Unequal Treaties.

Starting with the Treaty of Aigun in 1858 and the Treaty of

Peking in 1860, the Sino–Russian border was realigned in

Russia's favor along the Amur and Ussuri rivers. As a

result, China lost Outer Manchuria (an area of more than 1

million km2) and access to the Sea of Japan.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Outer_Manchuria

Map showing the original border (in pink) between Manchuria and Russia

according to the Treaty of Nerchinsk 1689, and subsequent loss of territory to Russia in the treaties of Aigun 1858 (beige) and Peking 1860 (red)

Russians in North America

■ Russians were the first white settlers in Alaska:

• Fur traders, in search of sea otter pelts.

• From Siberia, crossing the Bering Strait.

• Moved south along the Pacific coast, stopping just

north of San Francisco.

■ Russian departure:

• Competition with American, Canadian, and British

hunters who were destroying sea otter

populations.

• Alaska sold to the United States for $7.2 million

(1867).

• Moved into Alaska in the late 18th century(1784).

• Settled north of San Francisco (1812).

Russian Empire | History, Facts, Flag, Expansion, & Map | Britannica

The Qing reconquest of Xinjiang (Chinese:清軍收復新疆之戰)

was the event when the Qing dynasty in China reconquered

Xinjiang after the Dungan Revolt in the late 19th century. After a

century of Qing rule, the Uzbek adventurer Yakub Beg conquered

almost all of Xinjiang during the revolt, but was eventually defeated

by the Qing General Zuo Zongtang (also known as General Tso).

Furthermore, Qing China recovered the Gulja region through

diplomatic negotiations with the Russian Empire and the Treaty of

Saint Petersburg in 1881. Xinjiang was converted into a province in 1884.

Qing reconquest of Xinjiang Date 1876–1877 Location Xinjiang Result Qing victory Territorial changes Xinjiang returned to the Qing Empire

Belligerents Qing dynasty Kashgaria (Kokandi Uzbek Andijanis

under Yaqub Beg) Commanders and leaders

•Zuo Zongtang •Liu Jintang •Ma Anliang •Cui Wei •Hua Decai

Yaqub Beg Bai Yanhu

Units involved Han Chinese Xiang Army Khufiyya Sufi Hui Muslims (Dungans) from Gansu Gedimu Sunni Hui Muslims from Shaanxi

Kokandi Uzbek Andijanis

The Treaty of Saint Petersburg (1881) (Chinese:聖彼得堡條約),

also known as Treaty of Ili (Chinese:伊犁條約), was a treaty

between the Russian Empire and the Qing dynasty that was signed

in Saint Petersburg, Russia, on 24 February [O.S. 12

February] 1881. It provided for the return to China of the eastern

part of the Ili Basin region, also known as Zhetysu, which had been occupied by Russia since 1871 during the Dungan Revolt.

KULJA

TARIM BASIN

DZUNGARIA

Urumchi

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Saint_Petersburg_(1881)

During the Russian conquest of Turkestan, Russia gained control of eastern Kazakhstan up to the current Chinese border. During the Dungan Revolt, China lost control of much of its western territory, and power passed to various factions. In 1871, Russia occupied the Ili territory. There was talk of permanent annexation, but Saint Petersburg declared that it was occupying the territory to protect its citizens. Chinese authority in Xinjiang was re-established by 1877.

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4a/Territorial_Expansion_of_Russia.svg

Russian Empire Territories (1914)

Other territories that have ever been

part of Russian Empire Spheres of influence

Under Peter the Great, Russia was

proclaimed an Empire in 1721 and became

recognized as a world power.

The Russian Empire was an empire that

extended across Eurasia and North America from

1721, following the end of the Great Northern War,

until the Republic was proclaimed by the

Provisional Government that took power after the

February Revolution of 1917.

The third-largest empire in world

history, at its greatest extent stretching over

three continents, Europe, Asia, and North

America, the Russian Empire was surpassed in

size only by the British and Mongol empires.

It played a major role in 1812–1814 in defeating

Napoleon's ambitions to control Europe and

expanded to the west and south. This map shows the western boundaries and major cities of the Russian Empire at the time it entered the First World War in 1914.

https://nzhistory.govt.nz/media/photo/map-russian-empire-1914

Russian Empire 1858

The Alaska Purchase was the United

States' acquisition of Alaska from

the Russian Empire. Alaska was formally

transferred to the United States on October

18, 1867. ($7.2 million used to pay for

Alaska = roughly $109 million in 2018)

The Soviet Union

■ Causes of the Soviet Revolution • Outcome of the abuses of czarist Russia;

Detached ruling class (e.g. palaces such as the

Hermitage in St. Petersburg).

• Serfdom of peasants.

• Exploitation of workers in the industrial revolution.

• No democratic revolution; no channel for

grievances.

■ Revolution (1905-1917) • Capital: Petrograd to Moscow (1918).

• Several republics declared independence (e.g.

Ukraine) but were reintegrated in the Federation.

• Federation/federal structure: • USSR (Union of Soviet Socialist Republics) -1924.

• Colonized people were given autonomy and identity, yet

strengthened political and economic subjugation.

Serfdom is the status of many peasants under feudalism. It was a

condition of debt bondage and indentured servitude, which

developed during the Late Antiquity and Early Middle Ages in

Europe and lasted in some countries until the mid-19th century.

As with slaves, serfs could be bought, sold, or traded (with some

limitations as they generally could be sold only together with land).

In 1914, Russia entered World War I in

response to Austria-Hungary's declaration of

war on Russia's ally Serbia, and fought

across multiple fronts. The already-existing

public distrust of the regime was deepened

by the rising costs of war, high casualties,

and rumors of corruption and treason. All

this formed the climate for the Russian

Revolution of 1917, carried out in two major

acts.

The Russian Revolution of 1905 was said to be

a major factor contributing to the cause of the

Revolutions of 1917. The events of Bloody

Sunday triggered nationwide protests and

soldier mutinies. A council of workers called

the St. Petersburg Soviet was created in this

chaos. While the 1905 Revolution was ultimately

crushed, and the leaders of the St. Petersburg

Soviet were arrested, this laid the groundwork

for the later Petrograd Soviet and other

revolutionary movements during the lead up to

1917. The 1905 Revolution also led to the

creation of a Duma (parliament), that would later

form the Provisional Government following

February 1917.

The Soviet Union: The Political Framework

■ Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) • A “fathom federation”; a pretense of representativeness.

• Based on ethnic identities.

• Divided into 15 Soviet Socialist Republics (SSRs). • Broadly corresponded to a major nationality’s territory.

• Within the SSRs, smaller minorities were designated Autonomous Soviet

Socialist Republics (ASSRs).

• Below that were Autonomous Regions.

• Complicated, cumbersome and poorly designed political

framework.

■ Difficulty of multinational federation • Forced relocation of ethnic minorities in the east.

• Russification saw the settlement of ethnic Russians throughout the

Russian SSR and non-Russian SSRs. a form of cultural assimilation process during which non-Russian communities, voluntarily or not, give up their culture and language in favor of the Russian one.

Russia: Political Map

Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic

1922

On what foundations the USSR and its Republics were established?

The Russian Realm

The world’s widest realm.

The only realm accounted by a single country. The region occupies 1/8 of earth’s land surface, stretches 6,000 miles from west to east and 3,000 north to south; spans 11 time zones

Regions of the RussianRealm

Russia or the Russian Federation is a transcontinental country

in Eastern Europe and North Asia. At 17,125,200 square kilometres

(6,612,100 sq mi), it is, by a considerable margin, the largest country in

the world by area, covering more than one-eighth of the Earth's inhabited

land area, and the ninth most populous, with about

146.79 million people as of 2019, including Crimea. About 77% of the

population live in the western, European part of the country. Russia's capital,

Moscow, is one of the largest cities in the world and the largest city in Europe.

… Extending across the entirety of Northern Asia and much of Eastern Europe,

Russia spans eleven time zones and incorporates a wide range of

environments and landforms. From northwest to southeast, Russia shares

land borders with Norway, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Belar

us, Ukraine, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, China, Mongolia and North

Korea. It shares maritime borders with Japan and the U.S. state

of Alaska. Russia also recognises two more countries that border it,

Abkhazia and South Ossetia, both of which are internationally

recognized as parts of Georgia.

Geographic attributes

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russia

# Country (or dependency) Population (2020) Fert. Rate

9 Russia 145,934,462 1.8

https://www.worldometers.info/world-population/population-by-country/

A Constraining Physical Geography■ Geographic attributes • Immense territorial state; a continental power.

• Northernmost large and populous country in

the world.

• A former world colonial power.

• A comparatively small (<160 million) and

concentrated population.

• Concentrated development west of the Urals.

• Multicultural state (Russians and numerous

minorities).

• Minimal ports:

• Limited access to a warm water masses.

• Arctic ports seasonally closed (e.g.

Murmansk).

• Baltic Sea ports constrained access to

the Atlantic.

• Black Sea ports constrained access to

the Mediterranean.

• Pacific ports far from centers of economic

activity (e.g. Vladivostok).

Russia – United States Size Comparison

3

7

5

9

8

1

11

0

6

2

12

10

-9

4

-1 -12 -11

3.5

Twice the size of the US or China

Physical Geography of the Russian

Realm: Physiographic Regions

■ The Russian Plain (1) • Continuation of North European lowland. • Russian Plain as the Eurasian heartland:

• Center of great landmass. • Major influence on history. • Potential vulnerability (encirclement).

■ Ural Mountains (2) • North-south mountains not tall enough to hinder transportation. • Boundary between Europe andAsia. • Divides Russia in two vast expanses of low relief:

• Russian Plain to the West. • Siberia to the East.

■ West Siberian Plain (3) • World’s largest unbroken lowland where rivers flow northward,

like the Ob River. ■ Central Siberian Plateau (4)

• East of the Yenisey River. • Higher relief. • Most sparsely populated areas in the habitable world.

• Moderate topography drained by the Lena River. ■ Yakutsk Basin (5)

■ Eastern Highlands (6) • Remote jumble of ranges. • Kamchatka and Sakhalin. • Pacific Ring of Fire. • Volatile volcanism. • Prevalent earthquakes. • Oil and gas reserves.

■ Central Asian Ranges (7) • With the Caucasus, forms the Southern Perimeter. • High relief location of Lake Baykal (deepest in the world).

■ Caucasus Mountains (8) • Barrier and zone of conflict for Russia andneighbors.

• Russia plagued by long distances

and harsh environment

• Affected by 3 natural conditions • Latitudinal position (far north) :

• Colder climate with increasing

latitude

• 60° North latitude line; split the

country in half • Continental position (far away

from moderating oceans) :

• Dryer air

• Inland climatic environment

remote from moderating and

moistening maritime influence

• Altitudinal effect:

• Colder climate with increasing

altitude

• Except for northeastern Siberia,

no major mountain barriers to

block Arctic air masses

80º

60º

40º

20º

High latitudinal location strongly influences severe continental climate (southern most area same latitude as Memphis, TN) Moscow further north than Edmonton, Canada 75% of area is north of 49th parallel (northern border of US/Canada)

A Constraining Physical Geography

Russian Climate

A Constraining Physical Geography

Mountain Effect

-90o F (-68o C)

Artic Circle (66.5o N)

60o N

Continental Effect

Physical Geography of the Russian Realm: Harsh Environments

■ Environmental effect

• Permafrost:

• Water in the ground permanently frozen

• Unsuitable for cultivation

• Difficult to build over (roads, rail, pipelines) • High latitude ecology

• Tundra: 13% of Russian republic

• Bare ground and rock with lichen, mosses and low

grass

• Taiga:

• “snow forest” of coniferous trees

• Commercial potential, but slow to grow

Russian

Climate

Map

(permafrost,

very cold)

(mid latitude steppe and

desert with limited rainfall)

(hot summers, mild

winters, longer growing

season, good moisture) (cold winters, cool summers,

short growing season)

Climate as a

Limiting Element

• Agriculture – Short growingseasons – Drought prone – Erosion (accelerated via snowmelt) • Settlement patterns and transportation – Collective oriented (lower heating costs). – Limited outdoor activities. • Transportation – Higher construction costs. – Maintenance costs. – Significant damage done by freezing

and thawing cycles. – Rail is a more privileged mode of

transportation. – Limited highway infrastructures. – Drought prone – Erosion (accelerated via snowmelt) • Settlement patterns and transportation – Collective oriented (lower

heating costs). – Limited outdoor activities.

• Industry – High energy consumption – Specialized, expensive equipment

and facilities – Higher construction costs. – Maintenance costs. – Significant damage done by

freezing and thawing cycles. – Rail is a more privileged mode of

transportation. – Limited highway infrastructures.

• Logistics – Permafrost in farnorth – Spring and fall mud

A map of Russian federal highways

To what physical and man-made factors correspond the distribution of the Russian

population?

The New Russia: Cities Near and Far

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a2/CityPop_PercUrban-2018.png

■ Low rates of urbanization • 73% compared to Europe (85%). • Transcaucasus region even less

urbanized. ■ Urban network

• Moscow and St. Petersburg anchor the Russian core.

• Historic urban centers located to take advantage of geographical factors (access to arable land).

• Post-czarist industrial cities along the Volga River.

• East of the Urals, cities thin out. • Russian Far East: past naval power. • Kamchatka Peninsula: urban

desertion. • Capitals of Transcaucasia. • Potential of high speed train

systems, but only one city pair serviced so far (Moscow – St. Petersburg).

https://twitter.com/deepurban_io/status/1068175379230334976/photo/1

Physical Geography of the Russian Realm: Harsh Environments ■ Climate Change and Arctic Prospects

• Lengthy northern coastline on the Arctic Ocean.

• Mostly frozen throughout the year.

• Global warming and possibilities for the future:

• Melting of Arctic Ocean’s ice cover, opening up of Arctic ports and even passage through

the Bering Strait.

• Shrinking the area of permafrost.

• Improvement of agriculture on the Russian Plain.

• New oil and gas reserves.

• Expanding the Russian geographic realm northward.

■ Ecologies at Risk

• Global warming and environmental disruption:

• Animal and human communities have adapted to the harsh prevailing climate conditions of

the arctic.

• New oil and natural gas exploration:

• Offshore environments could also face dangers as these new resources become exploited.

• Globalization forces are infiltrating a part of the world long protected by distance and nature.

■ Nearly all raw materials required by modern industry are present:

• Oil and natural gas.

• Coal, iron ore, and other metals.

• Much of the realm is yet to be fully explored.

• The challenge of accessing and developing the resources.

Russia and ClimateChange • Historic quest for warm-water ports • Reduction in size of ice cap • Effects on

– Trade routes – Native peoples – Access to resources

The 2021 Arctic summer minimum

extent, on 16 September 2021.

The yellow line shows the 1981-

2010 average extent for that

month. Credit: NSIDC.

Arctic sea ice summer minimum

in 2021 is ‘12th lowest’ on record

https://www.carbonbrief.org/arctic-sea-ice-summer-minimum-in-2021-is-12th-lowest-on-record

Arctic Geopolitics

Arctic

topography

and

bathymetry

The states in or bordering the Arctic are commonly referred to as the Arctic Eight, and are the United States, Canada, Russia, Finland, the Kingdom of Denmark (Greenland), Norway, Iceland and Sweden.

The Arctic region is often defined as that area where the average temperature for the warmest month is below 10ºC.

Rank Country 2021

Population 2020

Population Growth

Rate Area Density (km²)

9Russia 145,912,025 145,934,462 -0.02% 17,098,2429/km² 33Ukraine 43,466,819 43,733,762 -0.61% 603,50073/km² 42Uzbekistan 33,935,763 33,469,203 1.39% 447,40074/km² 64Kazakhstan 18,994,962 18,776,707 1.16% 2,724,9007/km² 90Azerbaijan 10,223,342 10,139,177 0.83% 86,600116/km² 96Tajikistan 9,749,627 9,537,645 2.22% 143,10065/km² 95Belarus 9,442,862 9,449,323 -0.07% 207,60046/km²

112Kyrgyzstan 6,628,356 6,524,195 1.60% 199,95132/km² 113Turkmenistan 6,117,924 6,031,200 1.44% 488,10012/km² 131Moldova 4,024,019 4,033,963 -0.25% 33,846119/km² 132Georgia 3,979,765 3,989,167 -0.24% 69,70057/km² 137Armenia 2,968,127 2,963,243 0.16% 29,74399/km² 142Lithuania 2,689,862 2,722,289 -1.19% 65,30042/km² 151Latvia 1,866,942 1,886,198 -1.02% 64,55930/km² 155Estonia 1,325,185 1,326,535 -0.10% 45,22729/km²

301,325,580 300,517,069 22,307,768

Central Asia is a region in Asia which stretches from

the Caspian Sea in the west to China and Mongolia in the east,

and from Afghanistan and Iran in the south to Russia in the

north, including the former Soviet republics of Kazakhstan,

Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan.

Central Asia was historically closely tied to the Silk Road trade

routes, acting as a crossroads for the movement of people,

goods, and ideas between Europe and Asia.

https://worldpopulationreview.com/countries

Population of Post- Soviet States

Country Population (2020) Subregion Uzbekistan 33,469,203 Central Asia Kazakhstan 18,776,707 Central Asia Azerbaijan 10,139,177 Western Asia Tajikistan 9,537,645 Central Asia Kyrgyzstan 6,524,195 Central Asia Turkmenistan 6,031,200 Central Asia Georgia 3,989,167 Western Asia Armenia 2,963,243 Western Asia

# Country (or dependency)

Population (2023)

Yearly Change

World Share

9 Russia 144,444,359 -0.19 % 1.80 %

41 Ukraine 36,744,634 -7.45 % 0.46 %

43 Uzbekistan 35,163,944 1.55 % 0.44 %

66 Kazakhstan 19,606,633 1.08 % 0.24 %

90 Azerbaijan 10,412,651 0.53 % 0.13 %

95 Tajikistan 10,143,543 1.92 % 0.13 %

97 Belarus 9,498,238 -0.39 % 0.12 %

109 Kyrgyzstan 6,735,347 1.58 % 0.08 %

111 Turkmenistan 6,516,100 1.33 % 0.08 %

132 Georgia 3,728,282 -0.43 % 0.05 %

134 Moldova 3,435,931 4.98 % 0.04 %

140 Armenia 2,777,970 -0.09 % 0.03 %

142 Lithuania 2,718,352 -1.15 % 0.03 %

151 Latvia 1,830,211 -1.10 % 0.02 %

156 Estonia 1,322,765 -0.25 % 0.02 %

Population Challenges

Population 144,438,554 (excluding Crimea), 146.8 million (including Crimea) 146,793,744 as of January 1, 2019

Birth rate 12.05 births/1,000 population (2017)

Death rate 12.0 deaths/1,000 population (2017)

Life expectancy 72.90 years (2018) • male 68.50 years • female 78.50 years Fertility rate 1.62 (2017) Infant mortality rate 4.3 deaths/1,000 live births (2019)

Net migration rate 1.69 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2014)

Total average midyear

population

Live births Deaths Natural change

1989 147,342,000 2,160,559 1,583,743 1990 147,969,000 1,988,858 1,655,993 1991 148,394,000 1,794,626 1,690,657 1992 148,538,000 1,587,644 1,807,441 1993 148,459,000 1,378,983 2,129,339 1994 148,408,000 1,408,159 2,301,366 1995 148,376,000 1,363,806 2,203,811 1996 148,160,000 1,304,638 2,082,249 1997 147,915,000 1,259,943 2,015,779 1998 147,671,000 1,283,292 1,988,744 1999 147,215,000 1,214,689 2,144,316 2000 146,597,000 1,266,800 2,225,332 2001 145,976,000 1,311,604 2,254,856 2002 145,306,496 1,396,967 2,332,272 2003 144,648,624 1,477,301 2,365,826 2004 144,067,312 1,502,477 2,295,402 2005 143,518,816 1,457,376 2,303,935 2006 143,049,632 1,479,637 2,166,703 2007 142,805,120 1,610,122 2,080,445 2008 142,742,368 1,713,947 2,075,954 2009 142,785,344 1,761,687 2,010,543 2010 142,849,472 1,788,948 2,028,516 2011 142,960,908 1,796,629 1,925,720 2012 143,201,700 1,902,084 1,906,335 2013 143,506,995 1,895,822 1,871,809 2014 146,090,613 1,942,683 1,912,347 2015 146,405,999 1,940,579 1,908,541 2016 146,674,541 1,888,729 1,891,015 2017 146,842,402 1,690,307 1,826,125 2018 146,830,576 1,604,344 1,828,910 2019 146,764,655 1,481,074 1,798,307 2020 146,171,015 1,436,514 2,138,586

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_Russia

Population of Russia, Japan Italy, 1950-2050 (in millions)

60

80

160

140

120

100

Russia

Japan

Italy

40

20

0

1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020 2030 2040 2050

Source: United Nations Population Division

Russia’s Federal Districts

Political divisions (Federal subjects) According to the Constitution, the country comprises eighty-five federal subjects. These subjects have equal

representation—two delegates each—in the Federation Council. However, they differ in the degree of autonomy they enjoy.

•46 oblasts (provinces): most common type of federal subjects, with locally elected governor and legislature.

•22 republics: nominally autonomous; each is tasked with drafting its own constitution, direct-elected head of republic or a similar post,

and parliament. Republics are allowed to establish their own official language alongside Russian but are represented by the federal

government in international affairs. Republics are meant to be home to specific ethnic minorities.

•9 krais (territories): essentially the same as oblasts. The "territory" designation is historic, originally given to frontier regions and later

also to the administrative divisions that comprised autonomous okrugs or autonomous oblasts.

•4 autonomous okrugs (autonomous districts): originally autonomous entities within oblasts and krais created for ethnic minorities, their

status was elevated to that of federal subjects in the 1990s. With the exception of ChukotkaAutonomous Okrug, all autonomous okrugs

are still administratively subordinated to a krai or an oblast of which they are a part.

•1 autonomous oblast (the JewishAutonomous Oblast): historically, autonomous oblasts were administrative units subordinated to krais.

In 1990, all of them except for the JewishAO were elevated in status to that of a republic. •3 federal cities (Moscow, Saint Petersburg, and Sevastopol): major cities that function as separate regions.

Federal districts Federal subjects are grouped into eight federal districts, each administered by an envoy appointed by the President of

Russia. Unlike the federal subjects, the federal districts are not a subnational level of government, but are a level of administration of

the federal government. Federal districts' envoys serve as liaisons between the federal subjects and the federal government and are

primarily responsible for overseeing the compliance of the federal subjects with the federal laws.

Federal subjects of Russia Yellow: oblast, green: republic, orange: krai, blue: autonomous okrug, red: federal city, purple: autonomous oblast.

Federal districts

Current Organization Russian Federation(1992)

According to the 2010 census,

ethnic Russians make up 81%

of the total population. This

share remained steady over

the last few decades. Six

other ethnicities have a

population exceeding 1

million Tatars (3.9%),

Ukrainians (1.4%), Bashkir

(1.1%), Chuvash

(1%), Chechens (1%) and

Armenians (0.9%). In total,

160 different ethnic

groups live within the

Russian Federation's

borders.

Russian Ethnicity

The New Russia: A Complex Cultural Mosaic

■ Russian dominance

• Majority of realm’s population.

• Most widely dispersed.

■ Non-Russians

• Along realm’s borders.

• Other Slavic peoples (12% of the

population is Muslim).

■ Beyond the Caucasus Mountains

• Turkic people from Central Asia.

■ Near Abroad: former Soviet

Republics and a new Russian

sphere of influence

• Russia’s policy of intervention in any

threat along its borders or

against Russian minorities.

Percentage of ethnic Russians by federal subject in 2020. above 80% 70—79% 50—69% 20—49% below 20%

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9a/Percentage_of_Russians_by_region.svg

Russia's 160 ethnic groups

speak some 100

languages. According to the

2002 Census, 142.6 million

people speak Russian,

followed by Tatar with

5.3 million and Ukrainian with

1.8 million speakers. Russian is

the only official state language,

but the Constitution gives the

individual republics the right to

establish their own state

languages in addition to

Russian.

Language Language family Federal subject(s)

Abaza Northwest Caucasian Karachay-Cherkessia

Adyghe Northwest Caucasian Adygea

Altai Turkic Altai Republic

Bashkir Turkic Bashkortostan

Buryat Mongolic Buryatia

Chechen Northeast Caucasian Chechnya

Cherkess Northwest Caucasian Karachay-Cherkessia

Chuvash Turkic Chuvashia

Crimean Tatar Turkic Republic of Crimea

Erzya Uralic Mordovia

Ingush Northeast Caucasian Ingushetia

Kabardian Northwest Caucasian Kabardino-Balkaria

Kalmyk Mongolic Kalmykia

Karachay- Balkar

Turkic Kabardino-Balkaria Karachay-Cherkessia

Khakas Turkic Khakassia

Komi Uralic Komi Republic

Hill Mari Uralic Mari El

Meadow Mari Uralic Mari El

Moksha Uralic Mordovia

Nogai Turkic Karachay-Cherkessia

Ossetic Indo-European North Ossetia–Alania

Tatar Turkic Tatarstan

Tuvan Turkic Tuva

Udmurt Uralic Udmurtia

Ukrainian Indo-European Republic of Crimea

Yakut Turkic Sakha Republic

35 languages are officially

recognized in Russia in

various regions by local

governments.

Religion in Russia (Arena Atlas 2012)

Religion Number %

Christianity 66,840,000 47.1

Russian Orthodox Church 58,800,000 41

Unaffiliated Orthodoxy and other Orthodoxy 2,100,000 1.5

Eastern Orthodox - Moscow core region Old Believers' Orthodoxy 400,000 0.2 Christianity - Baltic states Unaffiliated Christianity 5,900,000 4.1

Islam - Southern Muslim Republics ProtestantismRoman Catholicism - Baltic states 300,000 0.2

Jewish- Russia Catholicism 140,000 0.1

Islam 9,400,000 6.5

Paganism 1,700,000 1.2

Rodnovery 750,000 0.5

Tengrism, Siberian shamanism, Assianism and other Paganisms 950,000 0.7

Buddhism 700,000 0.5

Hinduism 140,000 0.1

Judaism 140,000 0.1

Spiritual but unaffiliated with any religion 36,000,000 25

Atheism 18,600,000 13

Not stated 7,900,000 5.5

Total population 142,800,000

The Caucasus is an area situated between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea

and mainly occupied by Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia and Russia. It is home to the

Caucasus Mountains.

The Caucasus •Very mountainousand fragmented

•Ethnically verydiverse; tensions

•2008 Russian invasion into parts of Georgia

Ethno-linguistic groups in the Caucasus region (2007) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peoples_of_the_Caucasus#/media/File:Caucasus-ethnic_en.svg

Result Russian, South Ossetian and Abkhaz victory •Expulsion of ethnic Georgians from South Ossetia and the Kodori Gorge •Recognition of South Ossetia and Abkhazia by Russia •Russian military bases established in Abkhazia and South Ossetia

Territorial changes

The Caucasus: an area situated between

the Black Sea and the Caspian

Sea and mainly occupied

by Armenia, Azerbaijan,Georgia

and Russia. It is home to

the Caucasus Mountains.

Date 7–12 August 2008 (5 days)

Location •Georgia South Ossetia •Abkhazia

Between 1824 and 1859, Chechens fought

a protracted war that ultimately resulted in

Russian victory and the incorporation of

Chechnya into the Russian Empire.

Georgia loses control of parts of Abkhazia and former South Ossetian AO (Autonomous Oblast)

Chechnya is predominantly Muslim. There are small Christian and atheist minorities.

Classification of Human Races

One of the first classifications of mankind was made by Carl Linnaeus

(1707-1778), the father of taxonomy, in Systema Natura (1758). In this

work Linnaeus followed both continental geography and a color scheme that

divided man into white European, dark Asiatic, red American, and black Negro.

The term Caucasian originally referred in a narrow sense to the native inhabitants of

the Caucasus region. In his The Outline of History of Mankind (1785), the German

philosopher Christoph Meiners first used the concept of a "Caucasian" race in its

wider racial sense.

It was Johann Friedrich Blumenbach (May 11, 1752-Jan. 22, 1840, German

anthropologist, physiologist, and comparative anatomist, frequently called the father of

physical anthropology) who gave the term a wider audience, by grounding it in the

new methods of craniometry and Linnean taxonomy.

Johann Friedrich Blumenbach first presented De Generis Humani Varietate Nativa

(“The Natural Varieties of Mankind”) as a doctoral dissertation to the medical faculty

of Göttingen in 1775. His final taxonomy of 1795 divided all humans into five groups:

the Caucasoid race, the Mongoloid race, the Ethiopian race (later termed Negroid),

the American Indian race, and the Malayan race.

Born: May 23, 1707 Sweden Died: January 10, 1778 (aged 70) Sweden

Why White People are Called Caucasian (Illustrated)

a Carib chief of

Saint Vincent

a young Georgian female

a Tahitian female

an Ethiopian

female of Guinea owner of it

lived in Siberia

Johann Friedrich

Blumenbach: “Also for the

determination of the really

most beautiful form of skull,

which in my beautiful

typical head of a young

Georgian female always of

itself attracts every eye,

however little observant.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8iZDapgQdFo

Nell Painter combines the discursive meanings of scholarship with the visual meaning of painting, to answer, literally, why white

people are called 'Caucasian,' what that looks like, and how they all relate to our ideas about personal beauty. [6/2014] [Show

ID: 26025] UC Berkeley Graduate Lectures 57:55

Circassian beauties is a phrase used to refer to an idealized image of the women of the Circassian people of the

Northwestern Caucasus. A fairly extensive literary history suggests that Circassian women were thought to be

unusually beautiful, spirited, and elegant, and as such were desirable as concubines.

This reputation dates back to the Late Middle Ages, when the Circassian coast was frequented by traders from

Genoa (a port city in Italy), and the founder of the Medici dynasty, Cosimo de' Medici (27 September 1389–1

August 1464), had an illegitimate son from a Circassian slave. During the Ottoman Empire and Persian

dynasties, Circassian women living as slaves in the Sultan's Imperial Harem and Shah's harems started to build

their reputation as extremely beautiful and genteel. Most wives of several Ottoman Sultans were ethnic

Circassians converted to Islam.

The "golden age" of the Circassian beauty may be considered to be between the 1770s, when the Russian

Empire seized the Crimean Khanate and cut off their slave trade in Eastern European women, which increased

the demand for Circassian women in Near Eastern harems; and the 1860s, when the Russians destroyed

Circassia itself. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Circassian_beauties https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caucasian_race

Nell Painter is retired from Princeton University as the Edwards Professor of American History Emerita.

The Soviet Union

■ Centrally planned (command) economies:

• Do not allow free market mechanisms (economic laws of supply and demand) to dictate

economic policy making.

• Advocate government intervention at virtually all levels of the economy.

• Co-ordinates activities of different, if not all, economic sectors.

• Fix the price and the quantity of what is being produced.

• Establish a long-term perspective on the distribution of goods,

capital and resources with “five-year plans”.

■ Features of the soviet economy

• Focus on accelerated industrialization and collectivization of agriculture.

• Production of particular manufactured goods to particular places.

• Unnecessary movements leading to delays and shortages.

• Economic interdependence as a tool of national unity.

• State subsidy of uneconomic industries also furthers the goal of state security.

■ Labor

• Compensation not based on productivity.

• Forced migration, often through purges.

• Went hand-in-hand with the Russification process and attempted to better integrate

the entirety of Soviet society.

The Soviet Union

■ Five-year plans • No thought to existing or efficient economic geographies.

• Expensive manufacturing with no competition.

• Emphasized quotas for production at all levels and were often

poorly conceived.

• Compartmentalization of economic decisions. • Bureaucracy:

• A tool of government control.

• Centralized administration of its economy.

• Removed decision-making from the local, factory or farm level.

• Lacked flexibility to take account of changes.

• Synchronization of different parts of the economy suffered.

• Many inefficiencies in the production, assembly, and distribution

of goods.

The New Russia

■ Demise • The centrally planned economy failed; little economic returns.

• Cold War arms race drained resources.

• USSR depended on its ideological enemies for currencies (sell of

resources) and for grain supply.

• Russification fueled drive for independence by ethnicities of the

non-Russian SSRs

■ Implosion of the Soviet Union: 1991 • Last Soviet president resigned.

• SSRs declared their independence, depriving Russia of crucial

agricultural and mineral resources.

• Loss of Eastern European satellite states under Soviet political

dominance and former Republics.

Rank Country Region IMF Year UN Year WB Year 11 Russia Europe 1,710,734 2021 1,692,930 2020 1,483,498 2020 54 Kazakhstan Asia 187,836 2021 181,667 2020 169,835 2020 57 Ukraine Europe 164,593 2021 153,781 2020 155,582 2020 80 Belarus Europe 60,725 2021 63,080 2020 60,258 2020 82 Uzbekistan Asia 61,203 2021 57,921 2020 57,707 2020 83 Lithuania Europe 62,198 2021 54,627 2020 55,887 2020 90 Turkmenistan Asia 54,218 2021 48,276 2018 45,231 2019 91 Azerbaijan Asia 49,914 2021 48,047 2020 42,607 2020

102 Latvia Europe 37,720 2021 34,102 2020 33,505 2020 104 Estonia Europe 35,187 2021 31,471 2020 31,030 2020 123 Georgia Asia 16,163 2021 17,742 2020 15,892 2020 139 Armenia Asia 12,251 2021 13,672 2020 12,645 2020 145 Moldova Europe 11,998 2021 11,955 2020 11,914 2020 153 Kyrgyzstan Asia 7,470 2021 8,454 2020 7,736 2020 154 Tajikistan Asia 7,825 2021 8,333 2020 8,194 2020

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_GDP_(nominal)GDP (Nominal) in US$ Million by Country

Nominal differs from real GDP in that it includes changes in prices due to inflation, which reflects the rate of price increases in an economy.

Rank Country IMF Year

World Bank

Year CIA Year

6 Russia 4,328,122 2021 4,133,0842020 3,968,1802019 40 Ukraine 576,106 2021 545,0572020 538,3882019 41 Kazakhstan 526,746 2021 501,2792020 487,8682019 60 Azerbaijan 151,866 2021 146,1112020 144,3742019 63 Uzbekistan 270,013 2021 252,5732020 235,0212019 70 Belarus 192,626 2021 189,8542020 181,2862019 87 Lithuania 114,035 2021 108,2522020 103,7562019 98 Turkmenistan 104,539 2021 96,2352019 86,8582018

109 Latvia 63,539 2021 60,8862020 59,1022019 113 Georgia 58,226 2021 55,2012020 55,7762019 116 Estonia 52,813 2021 51,1062020 48,9872019 126 Armenia 40,500 2021 39,3642020 40,3842019 133 Moldova 35,906 2021 34,0362020 34,6802019 135 Kyrgyzstan 35,419 2021 32,7282020 33,9182019 136 Tajikistan 37,235 2021 36,8002020 31,5022019

GDP (Purchasing Power Parity, US$ million) by Country https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_GDP_(PPP)

Russia's GDP by purchasing power parity (PPP)

in 1991-2019 (in international dollars)

Rank Country Sub_Region Region IMF Year UN Year World Bank Year

50 Estonia Northern Europe Europe 26,470 2021 23,740 2019 23,312 2020

56 Lithuania Northern Europe Europe 22,245 2021 19,795 2019 19,998 2020

61 Latvia Northern Europe Europe 19,824 2021 17,885 2019 17,620 2020

79 Russia Eastern Europe Europe 11,654 2021 11,606 2019 10,127 2020

85 Kazakhstan Central Asia Asia 9,828 2021 9,793 2019 9,056 2020

96 Turkmenistan Central Asia Asia 9,032 2021 8,124 2019 7,612 2019

109 Belarus Eastern Europe Europe 6,487 2021 6,674 2019 6,411 2020

119 Azerbaijan Western Asia Asia 4,883 2021 4,782 2019 4,214 2020

121 Moldova Eastern Europe Europe 4,638 2021 2,957 2019 4,551 2020

125 Georgia Western Asia Asia 4,361 2021 4,439 2019 4,279 2020

130 Armenia Western Asia Asia 4,125 2021 4,623 2019 4,268 2020

133 Ukraine Eastern Europe Europe 3,984 2021 3,496 2019 3,727 2020

171 Uzbekistan Central Asia Asia 1,775 2021 1,756 2019 1,686 2020

185 Kyrgyzstan Central Asia Asia 1,123 2021 1,318 2019 1,174 2020

196 Tajikistan Central Asia Asia 810 2021 894 2019 859 2020

GDP (Nominal) in US$ Per Capita by Country

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_GDP_(nominal)_per_capita

Rank Country/Economy

Total GDP(PPP)(US$MM)

Agricultural Industrial Service Agricultural Industrial Service

World 127,800,000 6.40% 30.00% 63.60% 8,179,200 38,340,000 80,514,000 6 Russia 4,016,000 4.70% 32.40% 62.30% 188,752 1,301,184 2,501,968

42 Kazakhstan 478,600 4.70% 34.10% 61.20% 22,494 163,203 292,903 50 Ukraine 369,600 12.20% 28.60% 60.00% 45,091 105,706 221,760 63 Uzbekistan 223,000 17.90% 33.70% 48.50% 39,917 75,151 108,155 70 Belarus 179,400 8.10% 40.80% 51.10% 14,531 73,195 91,673 73 Azerbaijan 172,200 6.10% 53.50% 40.40% 10,504 92,127 69,569 84 Turkmenistan 103,700 7.50% 44.90% 47.70% 7,778 46,561 49,465 87 Lithuania 91,470 3.50% 29.40% 67.20% 3,201 26,892 61,468

108 Latvia 54,020 3.90% 22.40% 73.70% 2,107 12,100 39,813 115 Estonia 41,650 2.80% 29.20% 68.10% 1,166 12,162 28,364 118 Georgia 39,850 8.20% 23.70% 67.90% 3,268 9,444 27,058 135 Tajikistan 28,430 28.60% 25.50% 45.90% 8,131 7,250 13,049 136 Armenia 28,340 16.70% 28.20% 54.80% 4,733 7,992 15,530 143 Moldova 23,720 17.70% 20.30% 62.00% 4,198 4,815 14,706 144 Kyrgyzstan 23,150 14.60% 31.20% 54.20% 3,380 7,223 12,547

GDP (PPP) sector composition, 2017 (in percentage and in millions of dollars)

Country Total GDP(PPP)(US$MM) Agricultural Industrial Service Agricultural Industrial Service United States 19,490,000 (2017) 0.9% 19.1% 80.0% 175,410 3,722,590 15,592,000

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_GDP_sector_composition

What countries are the top producers and consumers of oil?

Last updated: July 26, 2021 https://www.eia.gov/

U.S. Energy Information

Administration 1000 Independence

Ave., SW Washington, DC 20585

Country Million barrels

per day

Share of

world total

United States 20.51 21%

China 13.89 14%

India 4.77 5%

Japan 3.79 4%

Russia 3.56 4%

Saudi Arabia 3.08 3%

Brazil 3.06 3%

South Korea 2.57 3%

Canada 2.53 3%

Germany 2.33 2%

Total top 10 60.08 60%

World total 100.05 100%

The 10 largest oil consumers and share

of total world oil consumption in 2018 1 Oil includes crude oil, all other petroleum liquids,

and biofuels. 2 Source: International Energy Statistics, Total oil

(petroleum and other liquids) consumption, July 26,

2021.

Country Million barrels per day

Share of world total

United States 18.60 20%

Saudi Arabia 10.82 11%

Russia 10.50 11%

Canada 5.26 6%

China 4.93 5%

Iraq 4.16 4%

Brazil 3.79 4%

United Arab Emirate 3.79 4%

Iran 3.01 3%

Kuwait 2.75 3%

Total top 10 67.60 72%

World total 94.20 100%

The 10 largest oil producers and share

of total world oil production in 2020 1 Oil includes crude oil, all other petroleum liquids,

and biofuels. 2 Production includes domestic production of crude

oil, all other petroleum liquids, biofuels, and

refinery processing gain. 3 Source: International Energy Statistics, Total oil

(petroleum and other liquids) production, July 26,

2021

The World’s Largest Oil Reserves By Country https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/the-world-s-largest-oil-reserves-by-country.html

Rank Country Proven Oil Reserves in 2020 in millions of barrels

1 Venezuela 302,809

2 Saudi Arabia 267,026

3 Canada 167,896

4 Iran 155,600

5 Iraq 145,019

6 Kuwait 101,500

7 United Arab Emirates 97,800

8 Russia 80,000

9 Libya 48,363

10 United States 47,053

11 Nigeria 36,972

12 Kazakhstan 30,000

13 China 25,620

14 Qatar 25,244

15 Brazil 12,999

16 Algeria 12,200

17 Angola 8,273

18 Ecuador 8,273

19 Mexico 7,300

20 Azerbaijan 7,000

21 Norway 6,611

22 Oman 5,373

23 India 4,600

24 Egypt 4,400

25 Vietnam 4,400

Profiling the top five countries with the biggest natural gas reserves By Andrew Fawthrop 15 Mar 2021

1. Russia – 38 trillion cubic metres Russia is home to the world’s largest natural gas reserves, with a total proved resource of 38 tcm (1,341 trillion cubic feet) according to the BP Statistical Review of World Energy 2020. That is equivalent to around 19% of the world’s total reserves. The majority of Russia’s natural gas reserves are located in Siberia, with the Yamburg, Urengoy, and Medvezh’ye fields particularly productive. State-backed company Gazprom owns around 71% of the country’s gas reserves – and roughly 16% of the global total. 2. Iran – 32 trillion cubic metres Iran accounts for around 16% of the world’s share of natural gas resources, with an overall reserve of 32 tcm (1,131 trillion cubic feet). Development of these vast reserves – most of which are located offshore – has been hindered by international economic sanctions placed on the country, notably by the US in response to geopolitical tensions and Iran’s nuclear development programme. Iran shares ownership of the world’s largest gasfield – South Pars/North Dome – with neighbouring Qatar. The field is located offshore in the Persian Gulf. In 2019, the country produced 244 billion cubic metres (bcm) of natural gas – around 6% of the global total. 3. Qatar – 24.7 trillion cubic metres Qatar has proven natural gas reserves of 24.7 tcm (872 trillion cubic feet), which is slightly more than 12% of the global total. The majority of these reserves are located in the offshore North Field, which spans an area roughly the same size as the country itself and is the world’s largest single natural gas field. Qatar is the world’s top producer of liquefied natural gas (LNG), and was the biggest LNG exporter in 2019, closely followed by Australia. Natural gas operations in the country are largely controlled by state-run company Qatar Petroleum. 4. Turkmenistan – 19.5 trillion cubic metres The Central Asian country of Turkmenistan has the fourth-largest natural gas reserves in the world, totalling 19.5 tcm (688 trillion cubic feet). That is equivalent to a 9.8% share of the of the overall global resource. Most of the natural gas reserves in Turkmenistan are located in large fields in the Amu Darya basin in the southeast, the Murgab Basin in the south, and the South Caspian basin in the western part of the country. Development of these abundant resources has been hindered by a lack of investment in infrastructure and export capabilities. Production in the country totalled 63.2 bcm in 2019, which was just 1.6% of the global total. 5. United States – 12.9 trillion cubic metres The US holds a 6.5% share of global natural gas reserves, with proven resources of 12.9 tcm (455 trillion cubic feet). Production of the fuel has skyrocketed over the past decade, driven by the shale fracking revolution that has also helped it to become the world’s largest oil-producing nation. In 2019, the US produced almost a quarter of the world’s natural gas supply – around 921 bcm – which was more than any other country. The majority of US natural gas is produced onshore via horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing techniques. Texas and Pennsylvania are the two highest-producing regions in the country.

https://www.nsenergybusiness.com/features/biggest-natural-gas-reserves-countries/

Country U.S. EIA

(start of 2021) OPEC

(start of 2018) BP

(start of 2018) Other Production (km³/year in 2020) Years of production

in reserve (EIA Reserves and Production) Russia 47,798 50,617 35,000 624 77 Iran 33,980 33,810 33,200 238 (2019) 142 Qatar 23,871 23,861 24,900 167 (2019) 143 United States 13,167 (2020) 9,067 8,700 947 14 Turkmenistan 11,326 9,838 19,500 84 (2019) 135 Saudi Arabia 9,430 8,715 8,000 114 83 China 6,654 2,934 5,500 179 (2019) 37 United Arab Emirates 6,088 6,091 5,900 63 97 Venezuela 5,663 5,707 6,400 23 (2019) 246 Nigeria 5,748 5,627 5,200 46 (2019) 125 Algeria 4,502 4,504 4,300 88 (2019) 51 Iraq 3,738 3,744 3,500 11 (2019) 340 Australia 3,228 3,173 3,600 146 (2019) 22 Mozambique 2,832 5 (2019) 566 Canada 2,067 2,059 1,900 179 (2019 12 Uzbekistan 1,841 1,564 1,200 47 (2019) 39 Kazakhstan 1,840 1,898 1,100 26 (2019) 71 Egypt 1,784 2,221 1,800 77 (2019) 23 Kuwait 1,784 1,784 1,700 20 (2019) 89 Azerbaijan 1,699 1,227 2,800 23 (2019) 74 Norway 1,557 2,314 1,700 112 14 Libya 1,501 1,505 1,400 11(2019) 136 Indonesia 1,415 2,866 2,900 63 22 India 1,388 1,289 1,200 28 50 Malaysia 1,189 2,909 2,700 75 (2019) 16 Ukraine 1,104 304 1,100 20 (2019) 55 Vietnam 708 203 600 8 (2019) 89 Oman 651 884 700 37 (2019) 18 Myanmar 651 273 1,200 18 (2019) 36 Pakistan 595 757 400 38 (2019) 16 Yemen 481 300 0.09 (2019) 5344 Argentina 396 381 300 41 10 Brazil 368 325 400 25 (2019) 15 Angola 339 422 7 (2019) 48 Peru 311 513 400 12 26 Trinidad and Tobago 311 433 300 31 10 Bolivia 311 310 300 15 (2019) 21 Congo 283 111 1.4 (2019) 202 Brunei 261 252 12 22 Syria 241 300 300 4 (2019) 60 Papua New Guinea 184 200 12 15 Mexico 181 146 200 27 (2019) 7 United Kingdom 181 269 200 40 (2019) 5 Israel 176 500 10 (2019) 18 Thailand 139 180 200 38 (2019) 4 Equatorial Guinea 139 145 5 (2019) 28 Cameroon 135 152 3 (2019) 45 Netherlands 133 804 700 33 (2019) 4 Bangladesh 127 346 200 385 29 (2019) 4 Romania 105 105 100 10 (2019) 11

Top 50 Countries by Natural Gas Proven Reserves https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_natural_gas_proven_reserves

In recent years, Russia has frequentlybeen described

in the media as an energy superpower. The country

has the world's largest natural gas reserves, the

8th largest oil reserves, and thesecond

largest coal reserves. Russia is the world's

leading natural gas exporter and second

largest natural gas producer, while also the second

largest oil exporter and the third largest oil

producer. Russia is the third largest electricity

producer in the world and the 5th largest renewable

energy producer.

Russia was the first country to develop civilian nuclear

power and to construct the world's first nuclear power

plant. Currently the country is the 4th largest nuclear

energy producer. The sector is rapidly developing, with

an aim of increasing the total share of nuclear energy

from current 16.9% to 23% by2020. In May 2014 on a two-day trip to Shanghai, President Putin signed a

deal on behalf of Gazprom for the Russian energy giant to supply

China with 38 billion cubic meters of natural gas per year.

Construction of a pipeline to facilitate the deal was agreed whereby

Russia would contribute $55bn to the cost, and China

$22bn, in what Putin described as "the world's biggest

construction project for the next four years." The natural gas

would begin to flow sometime between 2018 and 2020 and would

continue for 30 years at an ultimate cost to China of$400bn.

Energy Superpower

Russia's Gazprom already supplies gas to China through the first Power of Siberia pipeline under a 30-year, $400 billion deal, which was launched at the end of 2019. Expected to supply 16 billion cubic meters of gas this year, it will deliver increasing volumes before reaching full capacity of 38 bcm by 2025. Sep 15, 2022

U.S., Germany strike a deal to allow completion of controversial Russian Nord Stream 2 pipeline PUBLISHED WED, JUL 21 2021 2:54 PM EDTUPDATED THU, JUL 22 2021 3:46 PM EDT

Amanda Macias@AMANDA_M_MACIAS

https://www.cnbc.com/2021/07/21/us-germany-strike-deal-to-allow-completion-of-russian-nord-stream-2-pipeline.html

KEY POINTS •The United States and Germany reached an agreement to allow completion of

the $11 billion Nord Stream 2 pipeline, a thorny, long-standing point of

contention between the otherwise stalwart allies.

•The agreement reached between Washington and Berlin, which was

announced Wednesday, aims to invest more than 200 million euros in energy

security in Ukraine as well as sustainable energy across Europe.

Russian gas pipeline to Germany sows divisions in Europe and beyond BY SABRA AYRES JUNE 25, 2019 4 AM PT https://www.latimes.com/world/la-fg-russia-nordstream2-gas-pipeline-20190625-story.html

Russia says construction of controversial Nord Stream 2 pipeline to Germany is complete By The Associated Press Friday, Sep 10, 2021 https://www.defensenews.com/smr/energy-and-environment/2021/09/10/russia-says-construction-of-controversial-nord-stream-2-pipeline-to-germany-is-complete/

Russia’s state-controlled gas giant said Friday it has completed the construction of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline to Germany, a contentious project that Ukraine

and the United States have strongly opposed.

Gazprom said in a statement on the messaging app Telegram, citing its CEO Alexei Miller, that the construction of Nord Stream 2 was “fully completed” on Friday

morning.

Owned by Gazprom, with investment from several European companies, Nord Stream 2 is built under the Baltic Sea and bypasses Poland and Ukraine, raising

objections from both those countries.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has described the new pipeline as a powerful geopolitical weapon for Russia, which annexed Ukraine’s Crimean

Peninsula in 2014 after the ouster of the former Kremlin-friendly president and has thrown its weight behind a separatist insurgency in eastern Ukraine.

Washington has strongly opposed the construction of Nord Stream 2, but the administration of Joe Biden has opted not to punish the German company

overseeing the project while announcing sanctions against Russian companies and ships.

In July, the U.S and Germany reached a deal to allow Nord Stream 2′s completion without the imposition of U.S. sanctions on German entities.

Under the terms of the July 21 deal, the U.S. and Germany committed to countering any Russian attempt to use the Nord Stream 2 pipeline as a political weapon.

And, they agreed to support Ukraine and Poland by funding alternative energy and development projects.

Gas is pouring out of the Nord Stream pipelines. Here’s what you need to know By Rob Picheta, CNN Updated 3:34 PM EDT, Wed September 28, 2022 London Western nations have said leaks in two Russian gas pipelines, Nord Stream 1 and 2, are likely the result of sabotage. On Monday, leaks were discovered in the pipelines, prompting investigations by European authorities that determined powerful underwater explosions had occurred just before the pipelines burst in several places. The pipelines were created to funnel gas from Russia into the European Union, and were controversial long before Russia waged war on Ukraine, largely because of fears around European reliance on Russian energy.

https://www.cnn.com/2022/09/28/energy/nord-stream-pipelines-leaks-explainer-intl

Caspian Oil

Sr. No. Country Name Main Natural Resources TOTAL COST OF NATURAL RESOURCES

1 Russia Coal, oil, gold, gas and timber $75.7 trillions

2 United States Natural gas, gold, copper and oil $45 trillion

3 Saudi Arabia Gas, timber and oil $34.4 trillions

4 Canada Uranium, timber, oil, phosphate and gas $33.2 trillion

5 Iran Natural gas and oil $27.3 trillions

6 China Coal & timber $23 trillion

7 Brazil Gold and uranium $21.8 trillions

8 Australia Coal, iron ore, timber and copper $19.9 trillion

9 Iraq Oil & natural gas $15.9 trillions

10 Venezuela Iron, oil and natural gas $14.3 trillion

LIST OF TOP TEN WORLD’S RESOURCE RICH NATIONS STATISTICS

https://www.basicplanet.com/top-10-countries-natural-resources-world/

Countries With The Most Natural Resources Natural resources are the commodities which exist without any action from human beings. They are the raw materials which are used to produce and manufacture all of the products we use. The price of these resources varies depending on how rare they are to find, their quality and demand. Generally, these commodities whether extracted or not are valuable; therefore they are the backbone of many economies in the world. Some of the countries with the most natural resources in the world include: 10. Australia Mining is the primary industry in Australia and the main contributor to its economy which earns them over $19.9 trillion. Australia is one of the leaders in uranium and gold mining. Australia has the largest gold reserves in the world, and they supply about 14.3% of the world’s demand. The country also contributes over 46% of the world’s uranium. Australia is known for its vast reserve of iron ore, copper, timber, nickel, oil shale, rare earth metals, and coal. Australia is the top producers of opal and aluminum. 9. Democratic Republic Of The Congo One of the most significant sources of export income for the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is the mining industry. As of 2009, the country had over $24 trillion in unexploited mineral deposits, and this included biggest coltan reserve in the world and also their significant cobalt quantities. The state is known for its large gold, tin, tantalum, diamond, copper, and cobalt reserves. The American geological survey estimates that the country has over a million tons of lithium. There were over 25 international mining firms in the DRC by 2011. 8. Venezuela The South American state is the leading producer and exporter of numerous minerals including oil, iron ore, gold, coal, and bauxite. Venezuela has over $14.3 trillion worth of unused natural resources, and a majority of their minerals are state-controlled. Venezuela has the biggest largest oil reserves which are bigger than the reserves in the United States, Mexico and Canada combined. Venezuela is the third largest Latina America coal producer right behind Brazil and Colombia. They have the eighth largest natural gas reserves in the world which account for about 2.7% of the world’s supply. Venezuela has the world’s second- largest gold deposits. 7. United States The mining industry was quite active during the colonial era, but it became an important industry in the United States during the nineteenth century after more minerals were discovered. The total metals and coal reserves in the country were valued at $109.6 billion in 2015. The mining industry has employed over 158,000 people directly. The United States has been known as the leading producers of coal for decades now, and currently, they control over 31% of the global coal reserves and a significant amount of timber. The total natural resources in the country are valued at $45 trillion with over 89% of them being timber and coal. The United States has a sizeable deposit of copper, gold, oil and natural gas. 6. Brazil The natural resources in Brazil are estimated to be worth over $21.8trillion with some of their top commodities being uranium, gold, iron, and oil. Mining in the country is centered on bauxite, iron, tin, copper, and gold extraction. Brazil has the biggest uranium and gold deposits in the planet, and they are the second biggest iron producers. Even though they have vast oil deposits, the most valuable commodity in the country is timber. Brazil supplies over 12.3% of the world’s timber. 5. Russia The Russian mining industry is one of the biggest in the world, and it accounts for a large percentage of the Russian commonwealth production of a wide range of commodities including mineral fuels, industrial minerals, and metals. Russia is one of the leading producers of vanadium, silicon, palladium, nitrogen, magnesium metal and compounds, copper, arsenic, cement, and aluminum. The natural resources in the country are estimated to be worth over $75 trillion. Russia is the second largest exporter of rare earth metals. 4. India The mining sector in India contributes about 2.5% of the country’s GDP and about 11% of the industrial sector’s GDP. The mining and metal industry of India was estimated to be worth over $106.4 billion in 2010. India has the fourth largest coal reserves on earth and significant reserves of limestone, petroleum, diamonds, natural gas, chromite, titanium ore, and bauxite. The country accounts for over 12% of the world’s thorium production and over 60% of global mica production. India is the leading producer of manganese ore. 3. Canada Canada has over $33.2 trillion worth of natural resources with some of the commodities including industrial mineral (gypsum, potash, limestone and rock salt), energy minerals (uranium and coal), metals (nickel, zinc, copper, and lead) and precious metals (platinum, silver, and gold). Canada has the third biggest oil deposits in the planet right after Venezuela and Saudi Arabia and the second biggest uranium supply. Canada is the leading supplier of phosphate and natural gas. Canada is the third biggest exporter of timber in the world. 2. Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia has over 34.4 trillion worth of commodities with their primary natural resource being oil. Saudi Arabia has the biggest second biggest oil reserves in the planet which account for over 20% of the oil reserves globally. Petroleum was discovered in Saudi Arabia on March 3, 1938, and since then they have been the leading oil exporters. The country controls the sixth biggest natural gas reserves. Some of the natural resources in Saudi Arabia include feldspar, phosphate, sulphur, lead, tungsten, manganese, copper, zinc, silver, and gold. The country’s economy depends on their income from their oil exporting venture. 1. China China is one of the leading producers of phosphates, vanadium, tungsten, antimony, graphite, coal, tin, molybdenum, lead, zinc, and gold. They are the second top producers of manganese, bauxite, cobalt, silver, and copper. China is one of the top mining countries in the world, but since they lack local reserves most of their companies hunt for mining contracts in other countries. 90% of the natural resources in the state include rare earth metals and coal. Other critical natural commodities in China include timber, chromium, and gem diamond. The total natural resources in China are estimated to be worth over $23 trillion.

https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/countries-with-the-most-natural-resources.html

Fossil fuel Largest Producer Second largest producer Complete list

Coal China India List of countries by coal production

Natural Gas United States Russia List of countries by natural gas production

Petroleum United States Saudi Arabia List of countries by oil production

Nuclear fuel Largest Producer Second Largest Producer Complete list

Uranium Kazakhstan Canada List of countries by uranium production

Thorium india USA Occurrence of thorium

Gem Largest Producer Second Largest Producer Complete list

Fluorite China Mexico List of countries by fluorite production

Diamond Russia Botswana List of countries by diamond production

Metal Leading Producer Second Leading Producer Complete list Aluminium China India List of countries by aluminium production

Bauxite Australia China List of countries by bauxite production Bismuth China Mexico List of countries by bismuth production Copper Chile Peru List of countries by copper production

Chromium South Africa Turkey List of countries by chromium production Gold China Australia List of countries by gold production

Iron ore Australia Brazil List of countries by iron ore production Lithium Australia Chile List of countries by lithium production

Manganese South Africa Australia List of countries by manganese production Mercury China Mexico List of countries by mercury production

Mica China Russia List of countries by mica production Nickel Indonesia Philippines List of countries by nickel production

Niobium Brazil Canada List of countries by niobium production Palladium Russia South Africa List of countries by palladium production Platinum South Africa Russia List of countries by platinum production

Silver Mexico Peru List of countries by silver production Tin China Indonesia List of countries by tin production

Titanium China Russia (tied) List of countries by titanium production Vanadium China Russia List of countries by vanadium production

Zinc China Peru List of countries by zinc production

Lists of countries by mineral production https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lists_of_countries_by_mineral_production

Agriculture Russia is the world's top producer of barley, buckwheat and oats, and one of the largest

producers and exporters of rye, sunflower seed and wheat.

Russia's total area of cultivated land is estimated at 1,237,294 square kilometres

(477,722 sq mi), the fourth largest in the world. From 1999 to 2009, Russia's agriculture

grew steadily, and the country turned from a grain importer to the third largest grain

exporter after the EU and the United States. The production of meat has grown from

6,813,000 tonnes in 1999 to 9,331,000 tonnes in 2008, and continues togrow.

The 2014 devaluation of the rouble and imposition of sanctions spurred domestic

production, and in 2016 Russia exceeded Soviet grain production levels, and became the

world’s largest exporter of wheat.

Since Russia borders three oceans, Russian fishing fleets are a major world fish

supplier. Russia captured 3,191,068 tons of fish in 2005. Both exports and imports of

fish and sea products grew significantly in recent years, reaching $2,415 and $2,036

million, respectively, in 2008.

Sprawling from the Baltic Sea to the Pacific Ocean, Russia has more than a fifth of the

world's forests, which makes it the largest forest country in the world. The considerable

potential of Russian forests is currently underutilized and Russia's share of the global trade

in forest products is less than four percent.

22% of Soviet work force in agriculture vs 2% in US one Soviet farm worker feeds 8 Russians while one US farmer feeds 52 Americans

Private plots took up 4% of cultivated land but produced 48% of vegetables, 52% of meat, 67% of milk, and 84% of eggs.

Russia: Fertile Triangle

Russia’sCore

-Central IndustrialArea

-The VolgaRegion

-The UralsRegion

Russia’s Top Trading Partners Below is a list showcasing 15 of Russia’s top trading partners in terms of export sales,

revealing which countries imported the most Russian shipments by dollar value during

2020. Also shown is each import country’s percentage consumption of total Russian

exports.

1.China: US$48.9 billion (14.6% of Russia’s total exports)

2.Netherlands: $24.8 billion (7.4%)

3.United Kingdom: $23.2 billion (6.9%)

4.Germany: $18.5 billion (5.5%)

5.Belarus: $16 billion (4.8%)

6.Turkey: $15.5 billion (4.6%)

7.Kazakhstan: $14 billion (4.2%)

8.South Korea: $12.4 billion (3.7%)

9.United States: $11 billion (3.3%)

10.Italy: $10 billion (3%)

11.Poland: $9.5 billion (2.8%)

12.Japan: $9.1 billion (2.7%)

13.Finland: $7.1 billion (2.1%)

14.Ukraine: $5.9 billion (1.8%)

15.India: $5.8 billion (1.7%)

Over two-thirds (69.1%) of Russian exports in 2020 were delivered to the above 15

trade partners.

The United Kingdom was the sole top import customer to increase their purchases from

Russia from 2019 to 2020 via a 74.8% uptick.

Leading the decliners were the Netherlands (down -44.7%), Germany (down -33.9%),

Italy (down -30.2%), Finland (down -29.5%) and Turkey (down -26.4%).

https://www.worldstopexports.com/russias-top-import-partners/

Russia’s Top 10 Exports https://www.worldstopexports.com/russias-top-10-exports/

The following export product groups represent the highest

dollar value in Russian global shipments during 2020. Also

shown is the percentage share each export category

represents in terms of overall exports from Russia.

1.Mineral fuels including oil: US$141.3 billion (42.1% of

total exports)

2.Gems, precious metals: $30.4 billion (9%)

3.Iron, steel: $16 billion (4.8%)

4.Cereals: $9.5 billion (2.8%)

5.Machinery including computers: $8.3 billion (2.5%)

6.Wood: $8.2 billion (2.5%)

7.Fertilizers: $7 billion (2.1%)

8.Copper: $5.6 billion (1.7%)

9.Aluminum: $5.5 billion (1.6%)

10.Fish: $4.6 billion (1.4%)

Russia’s top 10 exports accounted for 70.5% of the overall

value of its global shipments.

Gems and precious metals was the fastest grower among

the top 10 export categories, up by 98.9% from 2019 to

2020 propelled by greater international sales of gold and

platinum. In second place for improving export sales was

cereals via a 20.4% gain led by wheat and barley. Russia’s

shipments of copper posted the third-fastest gain in value

up by 8.1%.

The leading decliner among Russia’s top 10 export

categories was mineral fuels including oil thanks to a -36%

drop year over year. That decrease traces back to lower

revenues for crude and processed petroleum oils as well as

gas and coal.

Country Exports 2021 Population China $2.16 Tn 1,444,216,107 United States $1.58 Tn 332,915,073 Germany $1.40 Tn 83,900,473 Japan $683.30 Bn 126,050,804 South Korea $577.40 Bn 51,305,186 France $551.80 Bn 65,426,179 Netherlands $526.40 Bn 17,173,099 Italy $499.10 Bn 60,367,477 Hong Kong $496.90 Bn 7,552,810 United Kingdom $436.50 Bn 68,207,116 Canada $433.00 Bn 38,067,903 Mexico $406.50 Bn 130,262,216 Singapore $372.90 Bn 5,896,686 Taiwan $344.60 Bn 23,855,010 Russia $336.80 Bn 145,912,025 Switzerland $336.80 Bn 8,715,494 United Arab Emirates $314.70 Bn 9,991,089 Belgium $309.10 Bn 11,632,326 Spain $301.50 Bn 46,745,216 India $299.30 Bn 1,393,409,038

https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/exports-by-country

15th

https://sipri.org/sites/default/files/2021-03/fs_2103_at_2020.pdf

STOCKHOLM INTERNATIONAL PEACE RESEARCH INSTITUTE

2020 Rank Supplier Arms Exp

(in billion TIV) 1 United States 9,372 2 Russia 3,203 3 France 1,995 4 Spain 1,232 5 Germany 1,201 6 South Korea 827 7 Italy 806 8 China 760 9 Netherlands 488 10 United Kingdom 429

World's largest arms exporters

Figures are SIPRI Trend Indicator Values (TIVs)

expressed in millions. These numbers may not represent

real financial flows as prices for the underlying arms can

be as low as zero in the case of military aid. The

following are estimates from Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.

World's largest arms importers 2020 Rank Recipient Arms Imp

(in billion TIV) 1 India 2,799 2 Saudi Arabia 2,466 3 Australia 1,658 4 South Korea 1,317 5 Egypt 1,311 6 China 811 7 Qatar 783 8 United Kingdom 764 9 Pakistan 759 10 Japan 724

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arms_industry

Rank Company name Defense Revenue

(US$ billions)

% of Total Revenue

from Defense

1 US Lockheed Martin 53.2 89%

2 US Boeing 33.5 44%

3 US Northrop Grumman 29.2 86%

4 US Raytheon Technologies 25.3 87%

5 US General Dynamics 24.5 62%

6 China Aviation Industry Corporation of China 22.4 34%

7 UK BAE Systems 22.2 95%

8 China China Electronics Technology Group 15.0 46%

9 China Norinco 14.5 22%

10 US L3Harris Technologies 13.9 77%

11 US United Technologies (since April

2020 Raytheon Technologies) 13.1 17%

12 Italy Leonardo S.p.A. 11.1 72%

13 EU Airbus 11.0 14%

14 France Thales Group 9.4 46%

15 Russia Almaz-Antey 9.4 98%

List of major weapon manufacturers

Mar 15, 2021

The USA delivered major arms to 96 states in 2016–20. Almost half (47%) of these Arms Exports went to the Middle East— an increase of 28% on the previous 5-year period.

OVERVIEW: In 2019 Kyrgyzstan was the number 142 economy in the world in terms of GDP (current US$), the

number 134 in total exports, the number 106 in total imports, the number 157 economy in terms of GDP per

capita (current US$) and the number 75 most complex economy according to the Economic Complexity Index

(ECI).

EXPORTS: The top exports of Kyrgyzstan are Gold ($1.63B), Precious Metal Ore($161M), Dried

Legumes ($79.5M), Refined Petroleum ($75.6M), and Scrap Copper ($63.8M), exporting mostly to United

Kingdom($1.63B), Kazakhstan ($374M), Russia ($369M), Uzbekistan ($140M), and Turkey ($87M).

IMPORTS: The top imports of Kyrgyzstan are Refined Petroleum ($632M), Rubber Footwear ($488M), Non-Knit

Women's Coats ($353M), Knit Sweaters ($276M), and Non-Knit Men's Suits ($267M), importing mostly

from China ($5.1B), Russia ($1.62B), Kazakhstan ($637M), Uzbekistan ($635M), and Turkey ($440M).

Kyrgyzstan https://oec.world/en/profile/country/kgz

Country Exports 2021 Population Kazakhstan $49.29 Bn 18,994,962

Ukraine $36.85 Bn 43,466,819

Lithuania $26.38 Bn 2,689,862

Belarus $24.20 Bn 9,442,862

Azerbaijan $15.69 Bn 10,223,342

Estonia $14.02 Bn 1,325,185

Latvia $12.34 Bn 1,866,942

Uzbekistan $11.38 Bn 33,935,763

Turkmenistan $7.39 Bn 6,117,924

Georgia $3.53 Bn 3,979,765

Moldova $2.42 Bn 4,024,019

Armenia $2.23 Bn 2,968,127

Kyrgyzstan $1.77 Bn 6,628,356

Tajikistan $794.70 Mn 9,749,627

https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/exports-by-country

OVERVIEW: In 2019 Tajikistan was the number 143 economy in

the world in terms of GDP (current US$), the number 161 in total

exports, the number 143 in total imports, the number 167

economy in terms of GDP per capita (current US$) and the

number 107 most complex economy according to the Economic

Complexity Index (ECI).

EXPORTS: The top exports of Tajikistan are Gold ($175M), Raw

Aluminium($139M), Raw Cotton ($86M), Zinc Ore ($73.1M),

and Other Ores($50.9M), exporting mostly to Turkey ($190M),

Switzerland ($175M), Uzbekistan ($133M), Kazakhstan ($93.6M),

and China ($82.6M).

IMPORTS: The top imports of Tajikistan are Refined Petroleum

($330M), Wheat ($205M), Petroleum Gas ($163M), Aluminium

Oxide ($112M), and Planes, Helicopters, and/or Spacecraft

($111M), importing mostly from China ($1.61B), Russia ($953M),

Kazakhstan ($649M), Uzbekistan($190M), and Turkey ($156M).

Tajikistan https://oec.world/en/profile/country/tjk#:~:text=Exports%20The%20top%20exports%20of,and%20China%20(%2482.6M).

A Realm in Transition ■ Russian Federation:

• Still bears the marks of the Soviet era.

• Strives for good relations with the Near Abroad.

• Maintains cohesion and further economic well-being. ■ Challenging future of the Russian Federation:

• As a state that borders 14 other countries and 4 other

realms.

• Challenges to manage its massive territory and diversity.

• Annexation of Crimea in 2014 (after referendum).

• On February 24, 2022, Russia commenced a full-scale

military invasion of Ukraine

In light of Russia’s history and geography, what role it is bound to

play in the global economy?

The "Big Three" at the Potsdam Conference, Winston Churchill, Harry Truman and Joseph Stalin.

Host country Occupied Germany

Date 17 July – 2 August 1945

Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek,

President Franklin D. Roosevelt, and

Prime Minister Winston Churchill met at

the Cairo Conference in Cairo, November

25, 1943.

The UN Security Council originally consisted of 11 members—five permanent members (the Republic of China [Taiwan], France, the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom, and the United States) and six nonpermanent members elected by the UN General Assembly for two-year terms. An amendment to the UN Charter in 1965 increased council membership to 15, including the original five permanent members and 10 nonpermanent members. Among the permanent members, the People’s Republic of China replaced the Republic of China in 1971, and the Russian Federation succeeded the Soviet Union in 1991. The nonpermanent members are generally chosen to achieve equitable representation among geographic regions, with five members coming from Africa or Asia, one from eastern Europe, two from Latin America, and two from western Europe or other areas.

https://www.britannica.com/topic/United-Nations-Security-Council

The United Nations is an international organization founded in 1945 after the Second World War by 51 countries committed to maintaining international peace and security, developing friendly relations among nations and promoting social progress, better living standards and human rights.

World War II (Sep 1, 1939 – Sep 2, 1945)

The leading Axis powers were Nazi Germany, the Kingdom of Italy and the Empire of Japan;

while the United Kingdom, the United States, the Soviet Union and China to an extent were the

"Big Four" Allied powers.

George F. Kennan, a career Foreign Service Officer,

formulated the policy of “containment,” the basic United

States strategy for fighting the cold war (1947–1989) with

the Soviet Union.

Kennan’s ideas, which became the basis of the Truman

administration’s foreign policy, first came to public attention in

1947 in the form of an anonymous contribution to the

journal Foreign Affairs, the so-called “X-Article.” “The main

element of any United States policy toward the Soviet

Union,” Kennan wrote, “must be that of a long-term, patient

but firm and vigilant containment of Russian expansive

tendencies.” To that end, he called for countering “Soviet

pressure against the free institutions of the Western world”

through the “adroit and vigilant application of counter-

force at a series of constantly shifting geographical and

political points, corresponding to the shifts and

maneuvers of Soviet policy.” Such a policy, Kennan

predicted, would “promote tendencies which must

eventually find their outlet in either the break-up or the

gradual mellowing of Soviet power.”

https://history.state.gov/milestones/1945-1952/kennan

George Frost Kennan (1904–2005)

Career Foreign Service Officer

States of Residence: New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin

1. Director of Policy Planning

Appointed: May 5, 1947

Termination of Appointment: May 31, 1949

Also served as Counselor Aug 4, 1949-Jul 11, 1951.

2. Counselor

Appointed: June 24, 1949

Entry on Duty: August 4, 1949

Termination of Appointment: July 11, 1951

3. Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary (Russia)

Appointed: March 14, 1952

Presentation of Credentials: May 14, 1952

Termination of Mission: Left post on September 19, 1952

Commissioned to the Union of Soviet Socialist

Republics. The Government of the Soviet Union

declared Kennan persona non grata (an unacceptable

or unwelcome person) on October 3, 1952, and he

did not return to post.

4. Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary (Socialist

Federal Republic of Yugoslavia)

Appointed: March 7, 1961

Presentation of Credentials: May 16, 1961

Termination of Mission: Left Yugoslavia July 28, 1963

Commissioned to Yugoslavia.

Tri-polar Geopolitics (PRC–US–Russia) & EU The Sino-Soviet split (1956–1966) was the breaking of political relations between the People's Republic of

China (PRC) and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), caused

by doctrinal divergences that arose from their different interpretations and practical applications

of Marxism–Leninism, as influenced by their respective geopolitics during the Cold War (1945–1991).

In late 1962, the PRC broke relations with the USSR.

The Sino-Soviet border conflict was a seven-month undeclared military conflict between the Soviet Union and

China at the height of the Sino-Soviet split in 1969. The most serious of these border clashes occurred in March

1969 in the vicinity of Zhenbao (Damansky) Island on the Ussuri (Wusuli) River, near Manchuria.

In the Western world, the Sino–Soviet split transformed the geopolitics of the bi-polar cold war into a tri-

polar cold war and facilitated and realised Mao's Sino–American rapprochement, by way of the 1972 (Feb 21 –

Feb 28, 1972) Nixon visit to China, and established the tri-polar geopolitics (PRC–USA–USSR) of the late-period

Cold War (1956–1991).

In May 1989, Gorbachev visited China and became the first Soviet leader to visit China since Khrushchev,

the chairman of the Soviet Council of Ministers in 1959.

On the second day after the collapse of the Soviet Union on December 26, 1991, China announced that it

recognized Russia as the successor of the Soviet Union.

American scholar Joseph Nye argues: With the collapse of the Soviet Union, that de facto US–China alliance

ended, and a China–Russia rapprochement began. In 1992, the two countries declared that they were pursuing

a "constructive partnership"; in 1996, they progressed toward a "strategic partnership"; and in 2001, they

signed a treaty of "friendship and cooperation."

70 years of Sino-Russian relations: the American factor behind brothers, enemies and good friends

June 7, 2019 https://www.bbc.com/zhongwen/simp/chinese-news-48540647

Henry Kissinger made a secret trip to China to meet with Zhou Enlai on July 9, 1971.

Joseph S. Nye Jr., University Distinguished Service Professor, Emeritus and former Dean of the Harvard's Kennedy School of Government. He received his bachelor's degree summa cum laude from Princeton University, won a Rhodes Scholarship to Oxford University, and earned a PhD in political science from Harvard. He has served as Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs, Chair of the National Intelligence Council, and Deputy Under Secretary of State for Security Assistance, Science and Technology.

As of 2019, Russia has the fifth-largest diplomatic network in the world; maintaining diplomatic

relations with 190 United Nations member states, two partially-recognized states, and three United

Nations observer states; with 144 embassies. It is considered a potential superpower; and is a

historical great power, an important regional power, and one of five permanent members of

the United Nations Security Council. Russia is a member of the G20, the Council of Europe,

the OSCE, and the APEC, and takes a leading role in organisations such as the CIS, the EAEU,

the CSTO, the SCO, and BRICS.

Russia maintains positive relations with other countries of SCO (Shanghai Cooperation

Organisation), EAEU (Eurasian Economic Union), and BRICS (five major emerging

economies: Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa), especially with neighbouring

Belarus, which is in the Union State, a supranational confederation of the latter with

Russia. Serbia has been a historically close ally of Russia since centuries, as both countries share

a strong mutual cultural, ethnic, and religious affinity. In the 21st century, Sino-Russian

relations have significantly strengthened bilaterally and economically—the Treaty of Friendship,

and the construction of the ESPO oil pipeline and the Power of Siberia gas pipeline formed a

special relationship between the two. India is the largest customer of Russian military equipment,

and the two countries share a historically strong strategic and diplomatic relationship since the

Soviet times. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russia

• the SCO comprises eight member states, namely the

Republic of India, the Republic of Kazakhstan, the People's

Republic of China, the Kyrgyz Republic, the Islamic

Republic of Pakistan, the Russian Federation, the Republic

of Tajikistan, and the Republic of Uzbekistan;

• the SCO counts four observer states, namely the Islamic

Republic of Afghanistan, the Republic of Belarus, the

Islamic Republic of Iran and Mongolia;

• the SCO has six dialogue partners, namely the Republic

of Azerbaijan, the Republic of Armenia, the Kingdom

of Cambodia, the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, the

Republic of Turkey, and the Democratic Socialist Republic

of Sri Lanka. http://eng.sectsco.org/about_sco/

The Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) is an economic union of post-

soviet states located in Eastern Europe, Western Asia and Central

Asia. The Treaty on the Eurasian Economic Union was signed on 29

May 2014 by the leaders of Belarus, Kazakhstan, and Russia, and

came into force on 1 January 2015. Treaties aiming for Armenia's

and Kyrgyzstan's accession to the Eurasian Economic Union were

signed on 9 October and 23 December 2014, respectively. Armenia's

accession treaty came into force on 2 January 2015. Kyrgyzstan's

accession treaty came into effect on 6 August 2015. Kyrgyzstan

participated in the EAEU from the day of its establishment as an

acceding state.

The Eurasian Economic Union has an integrated single market of 180

million people and a gross domestic product of over Int$5 trillion.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eurasian_Economic_Union

North Atlantic Treaty Organization

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 28 European countries and 2 North American countries. The organization implements the North Atlantic Treaty that was signed on 4 April 1949. Since its founding, the admission of new member states has increased the alliance from the original 12 countries to 31. The most recent member state to be added to NATO was North Macedonia on 27 March 2020. NATO currently recognizes Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, and Ukraine as aspiring members. An additional 20 countries participate in NATO's Partnership for Peace programme, with 15 other countries involved in institutionalized dialogue programmes. The combined military spending of all NATO members in 2020 constituted over 57% of the global nominal total. Members agreed that their aim is to reach or maintain the target defence spending of at least 2% of their GDP by 2024.

•ALBANIA (2009) •BELGIUM (1949) •BULGARIA (2004) •CANADA (1949) •CROATIA (2009) •CZECH REPUBLIC (1999) •DENMARK (1949) •ESTONIA (2004) •FINLAND (2023) •FRANCE (1949) •GERMANY (1955) •GREECE (1952) •HUNGARY (1999) •ICELAND (1949) •ITALY (1949) •LATVIA (2004) •LITHUANIA (2004) •LUXEMBOURG (1949) •MONTENEGRO (2017) •NETHERLANDS (1949) •NORTH MACEDONIA (2020) •NORWAY (1949) •POLAND (1999) •PORTUGAL (1949) •ROMANIA (2004) •SLOVAKIA (2004) •SLOVENIA (2004) •SPAIN (1982) •TURKEY (1952) •THE UNITED KINGDOM (1949) •THE UNITED STATES (1949)

EU NOT NATO Austria Cyprus Ireland Malta Sweden

Currently, five partner countries have declared their aspirations to NATO membership: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Finland, Georgia, Sweden and Ukraine. Finland and Sweden completed accession talks, and Allies signed the Accession Protocols for both countries in July 2022. They are now official Invitees and attend NATO meetings as such.

https://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/topics_49212.htm

“Türkiye will transmit the Accession Protocol for Sweden to the Grand National Assembly, and work closely with the Assembly to ensure ratification.”10 Jul. 2023 21:33

The Parties to this Treaty reaffirm their faith in the purposes and principles of the Charter of the

United Nations and their desire to live in peace with all peoples and all governments.

They are determined to safeguard the freedom, common heritage and civilisation of their peoples,

founded on the principles of democracy, individual liberty and the rule of law. They seek to promote

stability and well-being in the North Atlantic area.

They are resolved to unite their efforts for collective defence and for the preservation of peace and

security. They therefore agree to this North Atlantic Treaty :

Article 5

The Parties agree that an armed attack against one or more of them in Europe or North

America shall be considered an attack against them all and consequently they agree that, if

such an armed attack occurs, each of them, in exercise of the right of individual or collective

self-defence recognised by Article 51 of the Charter of the United Nations, will assist the

Party or Parties so attacked by taking forthwith, individually and in concert with the other

Parties, such action as it deems necessary, including the use of armed force, to restore and

maintain the security of the North Atlantic area.

Any such armed attack and all measures taken as a result thereof shall immediately be reported to

the Security Council. Such measures shall be terminated when the Security Council has taken the

measures necessary to restore and maintain international peace and security.

The North Atlantic Treaty Washington D.C. - 4 April 1949 Last updated: 10 Apr. 2019 14:16 https://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/official_texts_17120.htm

• Czechoslovakia

• East Germany

• Hungary

• Poland

• Romania

• Soviet Union

Mongolia: In July 1963 the Mongolian People's Republic asked to join the Warsaw Pact under Article 9 of the treaty. Due

to the emerging Sino-Soviet split, Mongolia remained in an observer status. The Soviet government agreed to station

troops in Mongolia in 1966.

The Warsaw Pact, formally known as the Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual

Assistance, was a collective defence treaty signed in Warsaw, Poland between the Soviet Union and seven

other Eastern Bloc socialist republics of Central and Eastern Europe in May 1955, during the Cold War. The Warsaw Pact

was the military complement to the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance (CoMEcon), the regional economic

organization for the socialist states of Central and Eastern Europe. The Warsaw Pact was created in reaction to the

integration of West Germany into NATO in 1955 per the London and Paris Conferences of 1954, but it is also considered

to have been motivated by Soviet desires to maintain control over military forces in Central and Eastern Europe.

The Warsaw Pact was established as a balance of power or counterweight to NATO; there was no direct military

confrontation between them. Instead, the conflict was fought on an ideological basis and in proxy wars. Both NATO and

the Warsaw Pact led to the expansion of military forces and their integration into the respective blocs. Its largest military

engagement was the Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia in August 1968 (with the participation of all Pact nations

except Albania, Romania, and East Germany), which, in part, resulted in Albania withdrawing from the pact less than a

month later. The Pact began to unravel in its entirety with the spread of the Revolutions of 1989 through the Eastern Bloc,

beginning with the Solidarity movement in Poland and its electoral success in June 1989.

East Germany withdrew from the Pact following the reunification of Germany in 1990. On 25 February 1991, at a meeting

in Hungary, the Pact was declared at an end by the defense and foreign ministers of the six remaining member states. The

USSR itself was dissolved in December 1991, although most of the former Soviet republics formed the Collective Security

Treaty Organization shortly thereafter. Throughout the following 20 years, the seven Warsaw Pact countries outside the

USSR each joined NATO (East Germany through its reunification with West Germany; and the Czech

Republic and Slovakia as separate countries), as did the three Baltic states (Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania) that had

been part of the Soviet Union.

The founding signatories consisted of the following communist governments:

• Albania (withheld support in 1961 because of the Soviet-Albanian split, formally withdrew in 1968) • Bulgaria

In 1990, with the reunification of Germany, NATO grew to include the former country of East

Germany. In 1997, three former Warsaw Pact countries, Hungary, the Czech Republic, and Poland,

were invited to join NATO. The Vilnius group of the Baltics (Estonia [2004-03-29], Latvia [2004-03-29],

Lithuania [2004-03-29]), and seven East European countries (Albania, [2009-04-01], Bulgaria [2004-

03-29], Croatia [2009-04-01], North Macedonia, Romania [2004-03-29], Slovakia [2004-03-29],

Slovenia [2004-03-29]) formed in May 2000 to cooperate and lobby for further NATO membership.

The Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) is an intergovernmental military alliance that was signed on 15 May 1992. In 1992, six post-Soviet states

belonging to the Commonwealth of Independent States—Russia, Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan,

Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan—signed the Collective Security Treaty (also referred to as the "Tashkent Pact" or

"Tashkent Treaty"). Three other post-Soviet states—Azerbaijan, Belarus, and Georgia—signed the next

year and the treaty took effect in 1994. Five years later, six of the nine—all but Azerbaijan, Georgia, and

Uzbekistan—agreed to renew the treaty for five more years, and in 2002 those six agreed to create the

Collective Security Treaty Organization as a military alliance. Uzbekistan rejoined the CSTO in 2006 but

withdrew in 2012. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collective_Security_Treaty_Organization

Formation •14 February 1992 (as the Unified Armed Forces) •15 May 1992 (as Collective Security Treaty) •7 October 2002 (as Collective Security Treaty Organization)

Type Military alliance

Headquarters Moscow, Russia

Location •Eurasia

Membership 6 members • Armenia • Belarus • Kazakhstan • Kyrgyzstan • Russia • Tajikistan

2 observers • Afghanistan • Serbia

3 former members • Azerbaijan • Georgia • Uzbekistan

The CSTO meeting in Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan, 8 November 2018

Russia shares land borders with Norway, Finland, Estonia,

Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Belarus, Ukraine, Georgia,

Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, China, Mongolia and North Korea. It

shares maritime borders with Japan and the U.S. state of

Alaska. Russia also recognizes two more countries that

border it, Abkhazia and South Ossetia, both of which are

internationally recognized as parts of Georgia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russia

Norway (1949)

Estonia (2004)

Latvia (2004)

Lithuania (2004)

Poland (1999)

Belarus

Ukraine

Georgia

Azerbaijan

Kazakhstan

China

Mongolia

North Korea

Japan

U.S. state of Alaska

Abkhazia & South

Ossetia,

both of which are

internationally

recognized as parts

of Georgia.

European NATO members (1994) present NATO members (formerly PfP members) Partnership for Peace members States which aspire to PfP membership

NATO recognizes as aspiring members.

Northern Europe & Eastern Europe

Eastern Europe: •Russia •Ukraine •Poland •Romania •Czechia •Hungary •Belarus •Bulgaria •Slovakia •Moldova

Northern Europe: •United Kingdom •Sweden •Denmark •Finland •Norway •Ireland •Lithuania •Latvia •Estonia •Iceland •Channel Islands •Isle of Man •Faeroe Islands

The Partnership for Peace (PfP) is a North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) program aimed at creating trust between NATO and other states in Europe and the former Soviet Union; 22 states are members.

CIA director dispatched to

Moscow to warn Russia

over troop buildup near

Ukraine By Natasha Bertrand, Jim Sciutto and Kylie Atwood,

CNN Updated 7:11 PM ET, Fri November 5, 2021 https://www.cnn.com/2021/11/05/politics/bill-burns-moscow-ukraine/index.html

Russian Defense Minister Calls

'Constant' U.S. Presence In

Black Sea A Provocation November 07, 2021 21:17 GMT By RFE/RL's Russian Service https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-united-states-black-sea/31550090.html

How the U.S.-Russia Relationship Got So Bad By Amy Mackinnon, a national security and intelligence reporter at Foreign Policy.

JUNE 18, 2021, 2:31 PM

https://foreignpolicy.com/2021/06/18/russia-us-summit-biden-putin-relations/

In 2014, when Russia illegally annexed the Crimean peninsula, the first major land grab in Europe

since World War II, it pushed relations between Moscow and the United States to their lowest ebb

since the Cold War. Somehow, with every passing year, further ruptures—including election

interference, cyberattacks, and the U.S. withdrawal from a Cold War-era nuclear arms treaty—have

caused the relationship to nose-dive further.

Wednesday’s summit in Geneva, Switzerland, between U.S. President Joe Biden and Russian

President Vladimir Putin was seen as an important effort to place some guardrails on the relationship

to prevent the world from seeing what rock bottom would look like. But beyond a joint statement

agreeing nuclear armageddon is in neither country’s interest, little substance emerged from the

summit. Now, both countries will try to lay the groundwork for future arms control talks, with a

glimmer of hope for further talks on other contentious issues like cyberattacks and prisoner

exchanges.

But realizing a breakthrough in relations is unlikely, the Biden administration has made stability and

predictability the watchwords in its dealings with Moscow. Even that may prove a stretch in dealing

with Putin, whose signature move is unpredictability.

As of July 2021, Ukraine has an estimated population of 41.4 million, and

is the eighth-most populous country in Europe.

According to the 2001 census, ethnic Ukrainians make up roughly 78% of the

population, while Russians are the largest minority, at some 17.3% of the

population. Small minority populations include: Belarusians (0.6%),

Moldovans (0.5%), Crimean Tatars (0.5%), Bulgarians (0.4%), Hungarians

(0.3%), Romanians (0.3%), Poles (0.3%), Jews (0.3%), Armenians (0.2%), Gre

eks (0.2%) and Tatars (0.2%). It is also estimated that there are about 10–

40,000 Koreans in Ukraine, who live mostly in the south of the country,

belonging to the historical Koryo-saram group.

Ukraine currently considers Euro-Atlantic integration its primary foreign policy objective, but in practice it has always balanced its relationship with the European Union and the United States with strong ties to Russia. Following independence, Ukraine declared itself a neutral state. In the 2000s, the government was leaning towards NATO, and a deeper cooperation with the alliance was set by the NATO- Ukraine Action Plan signed in 2002. It was later agreed that the question of joining NATO should be answered by a national referendum at some point in the future. During the 2008 Bucharest summit, NATO declared that Ukraine would eventually become a member of NATO when it meets the criteria for the accession. President Viktor Yanukovych (served as the prime minister of Ukraine from 2006 to 2007 and the fourth President of Ukraine from 2010 until he was removed from office in the 2014 Ukrainian Revolution) considered the current level of co- operation between Ukraine and NATO sufficient, and was against Ukraine joining NATO. Russia–Ukraine relations rapidly deteriorated in 2014 by the annexation of Crimea. As of February 2019, Ukraine has minimized its participation in the Commonwealth of Independent States to a critical minimum and has effectively completed its withdrawal. On 28 July 2020, in Lublin, Lithuania, Poland and Ukraine created the Lublin Triangle initiative, which aims to create further cooperation between the three historical countries of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and further Ukraine's integration and accession to the EU and NATO. On 17 May 2021, the Association Trio was formed by signing a joint memorandum between the Foreign Ministers of Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine. Association Trio is tripartite format for the enhanced cooperation, coordination, and dialogue between the three countries (that have signed the Association Agreement with the EU) with the European Union on issues of common interest related to European integration, enhancing cooperation within the framework of the Eastern Partnership, and committing to the prospect of joining the European Union. As of 2021, Ukraine is preparing to formally apply for EU membership in 2024, in order to join the European Union in the 2030s.

Population 2,416,856 (2021) Crimea

Pop. density 84.6/km 2

(219.1/sq mi)

Ethnic groups 65.3% Russians (1.492 mln) 15.1% Ukrainians (344.5 thousand) 10.8% Crimean Tatars (246.1 thousand) 0.9% Belarusians (21.7 thousand) 0.5% Armenians (11 thousand) 7.4% Others (169.1 thousand), including: Pontic Greeks, Krymchaks, Crimean Karaites, Ashkenazi Jews, Crimea Germans, Italians of Crimea (2014)

In February 2014, following the 2014 Ukrainian revolution that ousted the Ukrainian President, Viktor Yanukovych, Russia

annexed Crimea after a military intervention by pro-Russian separatists and Russian Armed Forces. A Crimea-wide referendum was

held on the issue of reunification with Russia. Its official results showed over 90% support for reunification, but the vote was

boycotted by many loyal to Ukraine. Russia formally annexed Crimea on 18 March 2014, incorporating the Republic of Crimea and the federal city of Sevastopol as the 84th and 85th federal subjects of Russia.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crimea

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ukraine

There are many different ethnic groups present in Russia and the countries of the

former Soviet Union today. This diversity has been the source or instigator of

conflict for centuries, and remains a major part of Russian political life today.

While the Russian Empire, the Soviet Union, and the Russian Federation were each

made up of a majority of ethnic Russians, the minority groups have always been present

to fight for their own languages, cultures, and religions.

The newly independent states—nationalizing states—are in tension with the "homeland"

state of Russia who will attempt to protect Russian ethnic minorities within the new

states. Each of the incipient fifteen states except for Armenia had in 1989

substantive Russian minority populations, a cause for conflict between Russia

and its former autonomous republics. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethnic_conflicts_in_the_Soviet_Union

‘Like Pre-Revolutionary Pogroms’: Ethnic

Conflicts on the Rise in Russia By Evan Gershkovich June 21, 2019 https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/06/21/roma-chemodanovka-ethnic-conflict-pogroms-russia-a66075

Poland–Russia relations have a long but often turbulent history, dating to the late Middle

Ages, when the Kingdom of Poland and Kievan Rus' and later Grand Duchy of Moscow struggled over control of their borderlands. Over centuries, there have been several Polish–Russian Wars, with Poland once occupying Moscow and later Russia controlling much of Poland in the 19th as well as in the 20th century, damaging relations. Polish–Russian relations entered a new phase following the fall of communism, 1989–1993. Since then, Polish–Russian relations have at times seen both improvement and deterioration. According to a 2013 BBC World Service poll, 19% of Poles view Russia's influence positively while 49% express a negative view. However, since the Russian annexation of Crimea, over 60-80% Poles are worried over future conflict with Russia, given the fact Russia maintains control in Kaliningrad Oblast.

Relations between modern Poland and Russia suffer from constant ups and downs. Among the constantly revisited issues is the fact that Poland has moved away from the Russian sphere of influence (joining NATO and the European Union) and pursuing an independent politic, including establishing a significant relations with post-Soviet states; for example, Poland was the first nation to recognize Ukraine's independence and Polish support for the pro-democratic Orange Revolution in 2004 against the pro-Russian presidential candidate Viktor Yanukovych inUkraine has resulted in a temporary crisis in the Polish–Russian relations. Occasionally, relations will worsen due to remembrance of uneasy historical events and anniversaries. Other issues important in the recent Polish–Russian relations include the establishment of visas for Russian citizens, NATO plans for an anti-missile site in Poland, the Nord Stream pipeline (Poland, which imports over 90 percent of oil and 60 percent of gas from Russia, continues to be concerned about its energy security which the pipeline threatens to undermine), Polish influence on the EU–Russian relations and various economic issues (ex. Russian ban on Polish food imports). Since the fall of the Soviet Union, with Lithuania, Ukraine and Belarus regaining independence, the Polish–Russian border has mostly been replaced by borders with the respective countries, but there still is a 210 km long border between Poland and the Kaliningrad Oblast. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poland%E2%80%93Russia_relations

Year GDP

(in bn. US$ PPP) GDP per capita

(in US$ PPP) GDP growth

(real) Inflation rate (in Percent)

Unemployment (in Percent)

Government debt (in % of GDP)

1992 1,703.0 11,482 −14.5 % n/a 5,2 % n/a

1993 1,591.9 10,724 −8.7 % 874.6 % 5.9 % n/a

1994 1,419.3 9,563 −12.7 % 307.6 % 8.1 % n/a

1995 1,389.5 9,370 −4.1 % 197.5 % 9.4 % n/a

1996 1,363.8 9,210 −3.6 % 47.7 % 9.7 % n/a

1997 1,406.3 9,517 1.4 % 14.8 % 11.8 % n/a

1998 1,345.6 9,130 −5.3 % 27.7 % 13.3 % n/a

1999 1,452.9 9,889 6.4 % 85.7 % 13.0 % 92.1 %

2000 1,635.3 11,170 10.0 % 20.8 % 10.6 % 55.7 %

2001 1,757.7 12,054 5.1 % 21.5 % 9.0 % 44.3 %

2002 1,869.3 12,875 4.7 % 15.8 % 8.0 % 37.5 %

2003 2,046.7 14,156 7.3 % 13.7 % 8.2 % 28.3 %

2004 2,253.9 15,647 7.2 % 10.9 % 7.7 % 20.8 %

2005 2,474.8 17,232 6.4 % 12.7 % 7.2 % 14.8 %

2006 2,758.8 19,249 8.2 % 9.7 % 7.1 % 14.8 %

2007 3,073.9 21,473 8.5 % 9.0 % 6.0 % 8.0 %

2008 3,298.7 23,054 5.2 % 14.1 % 6.2 % 7.4 %

2009 3,063.8 21,411 −7.8 % 11.7 % 8.2 % 9.9 %

2010 3,240.9 22,639 4.5 % 6.9 % 7.4 % 10.9 %

2011 3,475.4 24,259 4.3 % 8.4 % 6.5 % 11.1 %

2012 3,670.4 25,592 4.0 % 5.1 % 5.5 % 11.9 %

2013 3,798.0 26,430 1.8 % 6.8 % 5.5 % 13.1 %

2014 3,895.4 26,626 0.7 % 7.8 % 5.2 % 16.1 %

2015 3,845.1 26,247 −2.0 % 15.5 % 5.6 % 16.4 %

2016 3,897.7 26,551 0.2 % 7.0 % 5.5 % 16.1 %

2017 4,035.9 27,474 1.8 % 3.7 % 5.2 % 15.5 %

2018 4,227.4 28,797 2.8 % 2.9 % 4.8 % 14.6 %

2019 4,175.0 28,450 2.0 % 4.5 % 4.6 % 13.8 %

2020 4,096.5 27,903 −3.0 % 3.4 % 5.8 % 19.3 %

The following table shows the main economic indicators in 1992-2020.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economy_of_RussiaEconomy of Russia

In 2016, the oil-and-gas sector accounted for 36% of federal budget revenues. In 2019 Russia’s Natural Resources and Environment Ministry estimated the value of natural resources to $844 billion or 60% of the country's GDP.

Extreme inequality of household income and wealth in the country has also been noted. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russia

U.S. Sanctions on Russia: An Overview https://sgp.fas.org/crs/row/IF10779.pdf

The United States maintains sanctions on Russia related to Russia’s 2014 invasion of Ukraine, malicious cyber activities and influence operations (including election interference), human rights abuses, use of a chemical weapon, weapons proliferation, illicit trade with North Korea, support to the governments of Syria and Venezuela, use of energy exports as a coercive or political tool, and other harmful foreign activities. Sanctions against Russian individuals, entities, vessels, and aircraft (hereinafter, persons) may include the blocking of assets subject to U.S. jurisdiction; limits on access to the U.S. financial system, including transactions involving U.S. individuals and businesses; and denial of entry into the United States. The United States also tightly controls exports to Russia’s defense and energy sectors.

Russia was the lowest rated European country in Transparency International's

Corruption Perceptions Index for 2020; ranking 129th out of 180 countries.

Corruption is perceived as a significant problem in Russia, impacting

various aspects of life, including the economy, business, public administration,

law enforcement, healthcare, and education. The phenomenon of corruption is

strongly established in the historical model of public governance, and attributed to general weakness of rule of law in the country. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russia

Once Upon a Time in Russia: The Rise of the Oligarchs--A True

Story of Ambition, Wealth, Betrayal, and Murder Ben Mezrich (Author)

The New York Times bestselling author of Bringing Down the House and The Accidental

Billionaires tells his most incredible story yet: A true drama of obscene wealth, crime,

rivalry, and betrayal from deep inside the world of billionaire Russian oligarchs

that Booklist called "one more example of just how talented a storyteller [Mezrich] is."

Meet two larger-than-life Russians: former mathematician Boris Berezovsky, who moved into

more lucrative ventures as well as politics, becoming known as the Godfather of the Kremlin; and

Roman Abramovich, a dashing young entrepreneur who built one of Russia's largest oil

companies from the ground up.

After a chance meeting on a yacht in the Caribbean, the men became locked in a complex

partnership, surfing the waves of privatization after the fall of the Soviet regime and amassing

mega fortunes while also taking the reins of power in Russia. With Berezovsky serving as the

younger entrepreneur's krysha--literally, his roof, his protector--they battled their way through the

"Wild East" of Russia until their relationship soured when Berezovsky attacked President

Vladimir Putin in the media. Dead bodies trailed Berezovsky as he escaped to London, where an

associate died painfully of Polonium poisoning, creating an international furor. As Abramovich

prospered, Berezovsky was found dead in a luxurious London town house, declared a suicide.

With unprecedented, exclusive first-person sourcing, Mezrich takes us inside a world of

unimaginable wealth, power, and corruption to uncover this exciting story, a true-life thriller epic

for our time--"Wolf Hall on the Moskva" (Bookpage).

What China’s hypersonic test launch reveals

about the global arms race New defence system-busting weapon could change the balance of power China launched a Long March rocket in July that can propel a highly manoeuvrable, nuclear-capable glider into orbit Demetri Sevastopulo in Washington, Kathrin Hille in Taipei and Sylvia Pfeifer in London OCTOBER 21 2021 https://www.ft.com/content/f647d654-e870-4829-8dc2-90c98985c034

Avoiding the next nuclear arms race The world needs China and the US to find a framework for

managing tensions The editorial board OCTOBER 22 2021 https://www.ft.com/content/96d620a0-1825-4131-9cd2-21a3f0832b7d

Are We Headed for Another Expensive Nuclear

Arms Race? Could Be. By Steven Erlanger Aug. 8, 2019 https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/08/world/europe/arms-race-russia-china.html

BRUSSELS — After the recent death of the treaty covering intermediate-range missiles, a new arms race appears to be taking shape, drawing in more players, more money and more weapons at a time of increased global instability and anxiety about nuclear proliferation. The arms control architecture of the Cold War, involving tens of thousands of nuclear weapons, was laboriously designed over years of hard-fought negotiations between two superpowers — the United States and the Soviet Union. The elaborate treaties helped keep the world from nuclear annihilation. Today, those treaties are being abandoned by the United States and Russia just as new strategic competitors not covered by the Cold War accords — like China, North Korea and Iran — are asserting themselves as regional powers and challenging American hegemony. The dismantling of “arms control,” a Cold War mantra, is now heightening the risks of a new era when nuclear powers like India and Pakistan are clashing over Kashmir, and when nuclear Israel feels threatened by Iran, North Korea is testing new missiles, and other countries like Saudi Arabia are thought to have access to nuclear weapons or to be capable of building them.

US Hypersonic Missile Test Fails I Proof That US Is Behind China & Russia In Next Gen Weaponry? Oct 22, 2021 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ckpitGnrkwI The Pentagon's hypersonic weapon programs suffered a setback

after its latest test failed on October 21. As per reports, Pentagon

was unable to test the hypersonic glide body after the booster stack

failed. The glide body is a key component needed to develop a

hypersonic weapon. Hypersonic weapons have become one of the

top priorities for the Pentagon.

Hypersonic Missiles

Arms Race: What You

Need to Know Carnegie Endowment May 28, 2020 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s5Cj9oGkN8k

Hypersonic missiles can travel faster than five times the speed of sound. Russia and China have invested heavily in different types of hypersonic missiles capable of carrying both nuclear and conventional warheads. The United States has also invested in its hypersonic missile technology.

US carries out two successful hypersonic

missile tests By Oren Liebermann, CNN

Updated 7:16 PM EDT, Wed July 13, 2022

https://www.cnn.com/2022/07/13/politics/us-hypersonic-tests

As of 2019, Russia had around one million active-duty

personnel, which is the world's fourth-largest. Additionally, there

are over 2.5 million reservists, with the total number of reserve

troops possibly being as high as 20 million. Russia boasts the

world's second-most powerful military, and is among the

five recognized nuclear-weapons states, with the world's largest

stockpile of nuclear weapons. More than half of the world's

13,500 nuclear weapons are owned by Russia. The country

possesses the second-largest fleet of ballistic missile

submarines, and is one of the only three states

operating strategic bombers (the United States, Russia and

China), with the world's most powerful ground force, the

second-most powerful air force, and the third-most powerful

navy fleet. Russia has the world's fourth-highest military

expenditure, spending $65.1 billion in 2019. It has a large and

fully indigenous arms industry, producing most of its own military

equipment, and is the world's second-largest exporter of arms,

behind only the United States. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russia

Today, only nine countries own the entirety of the roughly 14,500 nuclear weapons on Earth. That’s down from the peak of about 70,300 in 1986, according to an estimate by Hans Kristensen and Robert Norris of the Federation of American Scientists. Two countries account for the rise and fall in the global nuclear stockpile: Russia and the United States. They currently possess 93 percent of all nuclear weapons, with Moscow holding 6,850 and Washington another 6,450 (which is smaller than the 40,000 that Russia, then known as the Soviet Union, had in the 1980s and the roughly 30,000 the US had in the mid-1960s through mid-70s). https://www.vox.com/future-perfect/2018/10/19/17873822/nuclear-war-weapons-bombs-how-kill

U.S. nuclear weapons in host countries

Country Air base Custodian Warheads

Belgium Kleine Brogel 52nd Fighter Wing 20

Germany Büchel 52nd Fighter Wing 20

Italy Ghedi Torre 52nd Fighter Wing

40 Aviano 31st Fighter Wing

Netherlands Volkel 52nd Fighter Wing 20

Turkey Incirlik 39th Air Base Wing 50

Total 150

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_states_with_nuclear_weapons

Country Warheads

Date of first test Site of first test CTBT status Delivery methods Tests Deployed Total

United States 1,700 5,55016 July 1945 (Trinity) Alamogordo, New Mexico Signatory Nuclear triad 1,054

Russia 1,600 6,25729 August 1949 (RDS-1) Semipalatinsk, Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic

Ratifier Nuclear triad 715

United Kingdom

120 2253 October 1952 (Hurricane) Monte Bello Islands, Australia

Ratifier Sea-based 45

France 280 29013 February 1960 (Gerboise Bleue) Reggane, French Algeria Ratifier Sea- and air-based 210 China Unknown 35016 October 1964 (596) Lop Nur, Xinjiang Signatory Nuclear triad 45 India Unknown 16018 May 1974 (Smiling Buddha) Pokhran, Rajasthan Non-signatoryNuclear triad 6 Pakistan 0 16528 May 1998 (Chagai-1) Ras Koh Hills, Balochistan Non-signatoryLand- and air-based 6 North Korea 0 459 October 2006 Kilju, North Hamgyong Non-signatoryLand- and sea-based 6 Israel 0 901960–1979 Unknown Signatory Suspected nuclear triad N/A

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_states_with_nuclear_weapons

Eight sovereign states have publicly announced successful detonation of nuclear weapons. Five are considered to

be nuclear-weapon states (NWS) under the terms of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT). In

order of acquisition of nuclear weapons these are the United States, the Soviet Union (now Russia), the United

Kingdom, France, and China.

Since the NPT entered into force in 1970, three states that were not parties to the Treaty have conducted overt nuclear

tests, namely India, Pakistan, and North Korea. North Korea had been a party to the NPT but withdrew in 2003.

Israel is also generally understood to have nuclear weapons, but does not acknowledge it, maintaining a policy of

deliberate ambiguity, and is not known definitively to have conducted a nuclear test. Israel is estimated to possess

somewhere between 75 and 400 nuclear warheads. One possible motivation for nuclear ambiguity is deterrence with

minimum political cost.

States that formerly possessed nuclear weapons are South Africa (developed nuclear weapons but then disassembled its

arsenal before joining the NPT) and the former Soviet republics of Belarus, Kazakhstan, and Ukraine, whose weapons

were repatriated to Russia.

According to Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), the worldwide total inventory of nuclear

weapons as of 2021 stood at 13,080. Around 30% of these are deployed with operational forces, whilst more than 90%

are owned by either Russia or the United States.

The Biden administration has decided to add a new nuclear gravity bomb to the US arsenal. The bomb will be known as the B61-13. The decision to add the B61-13 comes shortly after another new nuclear bomb – the B61-12 – began full-scale production last year and is currently entering the nuclear stockpile. The administration stated that it would not increase the number of weapons in the arsenal and that any B61-13s would come at the expense of the long-planned B61-12.

https://fas.org/publication/biden-administration-to-build-a-new-nuclear-bomb/

Biden Administration Decides To Build A New Nuclear Bomb To Get Rid Of An Old Bomb HANS KRISTENSEN & MATT KORDA 10.27.23

Secret locations of U.S. nuclear weapons in Europe accidentally

included in report from NATO parliament Adam Taylor July 16, 2019 at 1:33 p.m. EDT https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2019/07/16/location-us-nuclear-weapons-europe-accidentally-revealed-report-nato-body/

A recently released — and subsequently deleted — document published by a NATO-affiliated body has sparked headlines in Europe with an apparent confirmation of a long-

held open secret: U.S. nuclear weapons are being stored in Belgium, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Turkey.

A version of the document, titled “A new era for nuclear deterrence? Modernisation, arms control and allied

nuclear forces,” was published in April. Written by a Canadian senator for the Defense and Security Committee of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, the report assessed

the future of the organization’s nuclear deterrence policy.

But what would make news months later is a passing reference that appeared to reveal the location of

roughly 150 U.S. nuclear weapons being stored in Europe.

According to a copy of the document published Tuesday by Belgian newspaper De Morgen, a section on the nuclear arsenal read: “These bombs are stored at six US and European bases — Kleine Brogel in Belgium, Büchel in Germany, Aviano and Ghedi-Torre in Italy, Volkel in The Netherlands, and Incirlik in Turkey.” …

In 2016, after a coup attempt and the rapid spread of the Islamic State extremist group next door, analysts openly wondered whether Turkey was really such a great place to store nuclear weapons. “The military mission for which these weapons were originally intended — stopping a Soviet invasion of Western Europe because of inferior U.S. and NATO

conventional forces — no longer exists,” Reif (Kingston Reif, director for disarmament and threat-reduction policy at the Arms Control Association) said.

U.S. Nuclear Weapons in Europe. In his 2021 EUCOM posture statement, General Wolters reaffirmed that “as long as nuclear weapons exist, NATO must remain a nuclear Alliance. NATO’s nuclear capability preserves peace, prevents coercion, deters aggression, and instills confidence in the transatlantic bond. The Alliance’s strategic forces guarantee security and backstop U.S. operations in Europe.”

It is believed that until the end of the Cold War, the U.S. maintained approximately 2,500 nuclear warheads in Europe. Unofficial estimates range between 150 and 200 warheads spread out across bases in Belgium, Italy, Germany, the Netherlands, and Turkey.

In October 2019, reports surfaced that the U.S. was considering moving the approximately 50 tactical nuclear weapons stored at Incirlik Air Base in Turkey in light of ongoing tensions, but this does not appear to have happened.

All of these weapons are free-fall gravity bombs designed for use with U.S. and allied dual-capable aircraft. Although tactical nuclear weapons are forward deployed to Incirlik, “there are no aircraft capable of delivering the B-61 gravity bombs co-located at Incirlik Airbase.”

The U.S. has nuclear sharing agreements with Belgium, Italy, Germany, and the Netherlands that allow for U.S. tactical nuclear weapons to be delivered by allied aircraft, but no such agreement is in force with Turkey: “The weapons at Incirlik Air Base in Turkey are solely for use on U.S. aircraft.”

The B61 nuclear gravity bomb that is “deployed from U.S. Air Force and North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) bases” is undergoing a life extension program that is expected to add at least 20 years to its service life and “improve the bomb’s safety, security, and effectiveness.”

The B61-12 bomb, according to U.S. officials, is “intended to be three times more accurate than its predecessors.”

The first production unit is slated for FY 2022 with production completed in 2025.

In November 2020, the U.S. tested the B61-12 successfully with an F-35A following tests with the F-15E and B-2 bomber.

https://www.heritage.org/military-strength/assessing-the-global-operating-environment/europe

List by the International Institute for

Strategic Studies

Top 15 Defence Budgets 2020 2021 edition of "The Military Balance" from the International Institute for Strategic Studies

List by the Stockholm International Peace

Research Institute

2021 Fact Sheet (for 2020)

SIPRI Military Expenditure Database

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_military_expenditures

Rank Country Spending (US$ bn)

% of GDP

% of Global

Spending

World total 1,981 2.4 100%

1 United States 778.0 3.7 39%

2 China 252.0 1.7 13%

3 India 72.9 2.9 3.7%

4 Russian Federation 61.7 4.3 3.1%

5 United Kingdom 59.2 2.2 3.0%

6 Saudi Arabia 57.5 8.4 2.9%

7 Germany 52.8 1.4 2.7%

8 France 52.7 2.1 2.7%

9 Japan 49.1 1.0 2.5%

10 South Korea 45.7 2.8 2.3%

11 Australia 32.4 2.1 2.1%

12 Italy 28.9 1.6 1.5%

13 Canada 22.8 1.4 1.1%

14 Israel 21.7 5.6 1.1%

15 Brazil 19.7 1.4 1.0%

Rank Country Spending (US$ bn)

1 United States 738.0

2 China 193.3

3 India 64.1

4 United Kingdom 61.5

5 Russia 60.6

6 France 55.0

7 Germany 51.3

8 Japan 49.7

9 Saudi Arabia 48.5

10 South Korea 40.4

11 Australia 31.3

12 Italy 29.3

13 Brazil 22.1

14 Canada 20.0

15 Israel 19.9

Global Firepower's comprehensive index of military strength measures military power based on 50 individual factors, including weapon numbers and diversity, natural resources, manpower and financial stability. A perfect score on this index is 0.00. 20. Israel, Score: 0.35 a total of 643,000 military personnel, with 170,000 of those being in active service; a budget of $16.6 billion. 19. Australia, Score: 0.34 80,000 military personnel, 60,000 of which are active; 59 tanks; a budget of $42.7 billion. 18. Spain, Score: 0.33 a military personnel of 216,000, with 125,000 in active service; 327 tanks; a budget of $12.08 billion. 17. Saudi Arabia, Score: 0.32 505,000 people, with 480,000 in active service; 1,062 tanks; a budget of $48.5 billion. 16. Indonesia, Score: 0.27 1.08 million people in its military, 400,000 of which are active; 332 tanks; a budget of $9.2 billion. 15. Germany, Score: 0.25 215,000 military personnel, and 185,000 of them active; a budget of $57.4 billion; 244 tanks. 14. Iran, Score: 0.25 a total of 1,925,000 people in its military, 525,000 of which were active; 3,709 tanks; a budget of $14.1 billion. 13. Egypt, Score: 0.22 1,330,000 personnel in its military, 450,000 in active service; 3,735 tanks, a budget of $10 billion. 12. Italy, Score: 0.21 371,000 personnel in its military, 175,000 are in active service; 200 tanks; a budget of $30.47 billion. 11. Turkey, Score: 0.21 895,000 people in its military, with 355,000 active personnel; 3,045 tanks; a budget of $17.3 billion. 10. Pakistan, Score: 0.21 1.7 million people, with 654,000 in active service; 2,680 tanks, a budget of $12.3 billion. 9. Brazil, Score: 0.20 2 million people in its military, with 334,500 in active service; a budget of $29.3 billion and has 439 tanks. 8. United Kingdom, Score: 0.19 275,000 people in its military, with 195,000 in active service; a budget of $56 billion; 109 tanks. 7. France, Score: 0.17 450,000 people in its military, with 270,000 in active service; 406 tanks; a budget of $47.7 billion. 6. South Korea, Score: 0.16 6.7 million people in their military, with 600,000 in active service; 2,600 tanks, a budget of $48 billion. 5. Japan, Score: 0.16 319,000 people in its military, 250,000 of which are in active service; 1,004 tanks; a budget of $51.7 billion. 4. India, Score: 0.12 5.1 million people, with 1.4 million in active service; 4,730 tanks; a defense budget of $73.6 billion. 3. China, Score: 0.09 3.4 million people in its military with 2.1 million of those being in active service; 3,205 tanks, a budget of $178 billion. 2. Russia, Score: 0.08 3.5 million people in its military, about 1 million of which are in active service; 13,000 tanks; a budget of $42 billion. 1. United States, Score: 0.07 2.2 million people in its military services, with 1.4 million in active service; 6,100 tanks, a budget of $740 billion.

The 20 Most Powerful Military Forces in the World BY POPPY KORONKA ON 8/24/21 AT 7:00 AM EDT https://www.newsweek.com/most-powerful-military-forces-world-america-china-russia-1621130

The world's 20 strongest militaries JUL 13, 2021, 12:22 IST

20) Canada 19) Indonesia 18) Germany 17) Poland 16) Thailand

15) Australia 14) Israel 13) Taiwan 12) Egypt 11) Pakistan

10) Turkey 9) United Kingdom 8) Italy

Budget: $18.2 billion Budget: $60.5 billion Budget: $34 billion

Active frontline personnel: 410,500 Active frontline personnel: 146,980 Active frontline personnel: 320,000

Tanks: 3,778 Tanks: 407 Tanks: 586

Total aircraft: 1,020 Total aircraft: 936 Total aircraft: 760

Submarines: 13 Submarines: 10 Submarines: 6

7) South Korea 6) France 5) India

Budget: $62.3 billion Budget: $62.3 billion Budget: $50 billion

Active frontline personnel: 624,465 Active frontline personnel: 202,761 Active frontline personnel: 1,325,000

Tanks: 2,381 Tanks: 423 Tanks: 6,464

Total aircraft: 1,412 Total aircraft: 1,264 Total aircraft: 1,905

Submarines: 13 Submarines: 10 Submarines: 15

4) Japan 3) China 2) Russia

Budget: $41.6 billion Budget: $216 billion Budget: $84.5 billion

Active frontline personnel: 247,173 Active frontline personnel: 2,333,000 Active frontline personnel: 766,055

Tanks: 678 Tanks: 9,150 Tanks: 15,398

Total aircraft: 1,613 Total aircraft: 2,860 Total aircraft: 3,429

Submarines: 16 Submarines: 67 Submarines: 55

1) United States

Budget: $601 billion

Active frontline personnel: 1,400,000

Tanks: 8,848

Total aircraft: 13,892

Submarines: 72

America's biggest conventional military advantage is its fleet of 10 aircraft carriers.

https://www.businessinsider.in/defense/ranked-the-worlds-20-strongest-militaries/slidelist/51930339.cms#slideid=51930364

List of Top 10 Strongest Militaries of the World 2023

Rank Country Power Index (PwrIndx)

1 United States 0.0712

2 Russia 0.0714

3 China 0.0722

4 India 0.1025

5 United Kingdom 0.1435

6 South Korea 0.1505

7 Pakistan 0.1694

8 Japan 0.1711

9 France 0.1848

10 Italy 0.1973https://www.pw.live/exams/defence/top-10-powerful-countries-in-the-world-by-military-strength/

The 5 Most Powerful Armies in the World 24 Feb 2020

Fox News | By Greg Norman

https://www.military.com/daily-news/2020/02/24/5-most-powerful-armies-world.html

As of 2020, Global Firepower, a website that tracks military strength, says the following five armies are the most powerful, based on a rank given to them after looking at how they compare in categories “ranging from military might and financials to logistical capability and geography”: 5) Japan With an estimated active military personnel of 247,160, this Asian country only has a fraction of the headcount that volatile neighbor North Korea has, but makes up for it with its updated weaponry. Japan has 152 special mission aircraft – more than any country in the world other than the U.S., – and a formidable Navy fleet that contains 40 destroyers. It also has 3,130 armored vehicles, 1,004 tanks and 119 attack helicopters. Japan is estimated to spend $49 billion on its military in 2020. 4) India India, which has been engaged in a prolonged territorial conflict with nearby Pakistan over the Kashmir region, has an estimated 1,444,000 people actively serving in its armed forces. The developing nation is amongst the world’s leaders in the number of tanks (4,292), towed artillery (4,060) and fighter aircraft (538). India is estimated to spend $61 billion on its military this year. 3) China The communist superpower has an estimated active personnel of 2,183,000 – the largest in the world. China has been building out its Navy in recent years while engaging in territorial disputes across the South China Sea. Today, they have 74 submarines, 52 frigates and 36 destroyers. On land, China has 33,000 armored vehicles and 3,500 tanks. Their Air Force has amassed 1,232 fighter aircraft and 281 attack helicopters. China is estimated to spend $237 billion on its armed forces in 2020. 2) Russia Russia, whose military has become involved in Syria and Ukraine in recent years, has the most tanks of any country in the world: 12,950, more than double what the U.S. has. Its estimated 1,013,628 active personnel, on land, are in charge of commanding 27,038 armored vehicles, 6,083 units of self-propelled artillery and 3,860 rocket projectors. In the skies, Russia’s air force has 873 fighter aircraft and 531 attack helicopters. In water, they have 62 submarines and 48 mine warfare ships. Russia is estimated to spend $48 billion on its military this year. 1) United States America has more air units than any other country on Earth, with 2,085 fighters, 967 attack helicopters, 945 transports and 742 special mission aircraft. The U.S. also leads the world with 39,253 armored vehicles, 91 Navy destroyers, and 20 aircraft carriers. It has an estimated 1,400,000 active personnel. Washington has allocated $750 billion to the U.S. military budget in 2020.

Top 10 Countries in Space Technology in 2018 1.The US The US is currently leading the chart of the top 10 countries in space technology, accounting for over 30% of the operational spacecraft currently in orbit around Earth. The nation launched its first

satellite into space in February 1958 and currently operates a large fleet of communications, electronic intelligence, missile detection, weather, technology, navigation, and surveillance satellites. The

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is the country’s major space programme organisation that has operated some of the world’s most renowned space programmes including The

Apollo moon-landing missions, the Skylab space station, Space Shuttle, International Space Station (ISS), Mars Exploration Rover.

2.China China has the world’s second largest fleet of spacecraft, constellations of navigation satellites, remote sensing satellites, communication satellites, surveillance and spacecraft in operation. China’s major

space programme include the Tiangong-1 space station, Shenzhou manned space flight programme and the Chinese Lunar Exploration Programme (CLEP). The Chinese National Space Administration

(CNSA) is the main operator for national space programmes, while state-owned China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC) is the prime contractor responsible for the design and

development of launch vehicles and satellites as well as commercial launch services.

3.Russia

Russia was the first country in the world to start space programme back in 1957 when the world’s first artificial satellite Sputnik 1 was

launched by the Soviet Union. The country now has the third largest fleet of spacecraft including communications, meteorological and

reconnaissance satellites. Its major space programmes include Soyuz manned spacecraft, Salyut 1 space station and Lunokhod 1

space rover. The Russian Federal Space Agency (Roskosmos) and the Russian Space Forces (VKS) are the country’s major space

project operators.

4.Japan Japan launched its first satellite Osumi into space in 1970, making it the fourth country in the world to launch satellite into space, after USSR, the US and UK. Japan now operates a fleet of

communications, meteorological, earth observation and astronomical observation satellites. Major Japanese space programmes are the Japanese Experiment Module (KIBO)-ISS, H-II Transfer Vehicle

KOUNOTORI5 (HTV5) and H-II launch vehicle. The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) is in charge of the country’s space projects.

5.United Kingdom The United Kingdom launched its first satellite Ariel 1 in 1962, making it the third nation after the USSR and the US to launch artificial satellite into orbit. Today, the UK operates many satellites including

civil and military communications satellites, earth observation satellites, and scientific and exploration spacecraft. The UK is one of the largest sponsors to the European Space Agency (ESA) and

participated in several major space missions including BepiColombo, Euclid and ExoMars Rover carried out by the ESA. The United Kingdom Space Agency (UKSA) is in charge of the country’s space

programmes.

6.India India started its space mission in 1975. India currently operates INSAT and GSAT series communication satellites, earth observation satellites, and IRNSS series navigational satellites. The nation’s

space research activities are controlled by state-owned Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO). India also executed the Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM) at a cost of $75m, spending approximately

one-tenth of what NASA did on the MAVEN Mars mission.

7.Canada Canada’s launched its first satellite Alouette 1 in 1962. It currently operates a fleet of RADARSAT and SCISAT earth observation satellites, ANIK communications satellites, and BRITE science satellites

as well as micro and hybrid spacecraft. However, the nation currently doesn’t have satellite launch system, and depends on the US, India and Russia to launch its spacecraft. The Canadian space

programme is controlled by the Canadian Space Agency (CSA).

8.Germany Germany launched its first satellite of Azur in 1969, since then it has launched several spacecrafts including telecommunications, navigation and earth observation satellites, and are involved in the core

missions such as Cassini-Huygens mission to Saturn and its moons, European space laboratory Columbus, Dawn – Mission to Vesta and Ceres and the European Galileo navigation system. The

national space programme is operated by the German Aerospace Center (DLR).

9.France France is one of the largest space industry players in EU and one of the top 10 countries in space technology globally. It is now operating several earth observation and reconnaissance satellites,

electronic signals intelligence satellites, civil and military communications satellites. It’s state-owned Centre National d’Etudes Spatiales (CNES) is responsible for the country’s space programmes.

France is also the the largest contributors to the European Space Agency (ESA) which is headquartered in Paris.

10. Luxembourg Luxembourg operates large number of communications and remote sensing satellites, making it one of the top countries with most advanced space technology. It is one of the Member States of ESA

and carries space research activities under its National Action Plan for Space R&D. The nation is also home of world’s leading telecommunications satellite operators SES (Société Européenne des

Satellites) and Intelsat.

https://www.bizvibe.com/blog/top-10-countries-in-space-technology/