Russia and the Near Abroad Top 8 Notes *

#1 – What is Eurasia? Some geographers suggest that the huge connected landmass of Europe and Asia should be seen as ONE continent – Eurasia! The landmass is nearly ½ of the Northern Hemisphere (8.5 million square miles). Spans 11 time zones Largest country in this region is Russia (2x the size of USA).

#2 – Independent Republics 15 Countries within 4 regions Slavic States: Belarus, Moldova, Russia, and Ukraine. Central Asia: Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan (tuh-jik-uh-stan) , Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan (ooz-bek-uh-stan). Caucasus Region: Armenia, Azerbaijan (ah-zer- bahy-jahn), and Georgia. Baltic States: Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania – closer to Europe than Russia.

#3 – Physical Features of Eurasia Ural Mountains – usually considered the boundary between Europe and Asia. In the west the land is flat and becomes increasingly mountainous toward the east and south. Steppes – vast grassland plains in central Russia. Siberia – the Asian part of Russia – has a subarctic harsh climate and is located in the eastern part of Russia.

#4 – People and Cultures Northern Eurasia population – 280 million and population density is low (32 people per square mile) Losing population as the death rate is higher than birth rate (poverty, smoking, alcohol abuse, abortion related deaths, suicide) Over 100 ethnic groups and speak more than 200 languages.

#5 – Climate and Vegetation Four broad bands of vegetation: tundra, forest, steppe, and desert. Largest continuous area of forest in the world is the Russian Taiga – coniferous trees.

#6 – Economy and Resources Russia has many resources…in remote locations: huge deposits of coal, oil, natural gas, gold, diamonds, etc. lie under permafrost (permanently frozen soil) in Siberia! Longest railroad in the world is the Trans Siberian Railroad – 5,700 miles long!

#7 – Chernobyl 1986: Accidental explosion destroyed a nuclear reactor at Chernobyl, Ukraine. Cloud of radiation went into the air. 26 people were killed, hundreds injured, millions exposed to radiation. 12.3 million acres of land were polluted from radiation Long term effects: water pollution, birth defects, various kinds of cancer. Town of Chernobyl no longer exists – people were evacuated, buildings bulldozed to the ground, nuclear reactor was encased in steel to prevent further radiation from escaping and causing harm. Not fit for human occupation for a long time!

Chernobyl Effects

#8 – Brief History of Russia 1480-1900s: Czars (emperors) conquer other lands and add the territory to Russia (included most of Northern Eurasia) 1917: Bolshevik Revolution (led by Vladimir Lenin) overthrew the Czar Nicholas (Anastasia) and set up a Communist dictatorship, aka: Soviet Union (USSR). 1924: Josef Stalin comes to power as a ruthless dictator and Leon Trotsky leads Red Army 1957: Russia sent up the first satellite (Sputnik) and starts the space race with the USA 1950s-1980s: USSR and USA are enemies in the Cold War Famous Czars: Ivan the Terrible, Peter the Great, Catherine the Great *

#8 Brief History of Russia 1985: Mikhail Gorbachev began reforms Glasnost (openness) which allowed citizens to say what they wanted without fear of government. Perestroika – economic restructuring which called for a gradual change from command system to private ownership of goods and services. 1991: Soviet Union dissolved and major republics became independent nations. Russians voted for Boris Yeltsin as first democratic president. 2000-2008: Vladimir Putin is elected as president 2008: Dmitri A. Medvedev is elected president and Putin is Prime Minister 2012: Putin is president, Medvedev Prime Minister- CORRUPT!!!

Atlas Pages Europe-side of “Eurasia” Asia-side of “Eurasia” 134 136 145 148 Asia-side of “Eurasia” 152 154