Becoming a Free Market Economy
• After the collapse of Communism, Russia moved toward a free market economy
Free Market Economy: People, rather than government, decide what goods and services to produce, how to produce, & who will buy them
I. Russia’s Economic Regions• Moscow
– Political & cultural center• Port Cities:
– Kaliningrad-only port in the Baltic Sea that stays ice-free year-round
– St. Petersburg
• Siberia– Hard to tap into resources because of harsh climate
• Volga River– Volga carries almost ½ of Russia’s river traffic – Russia’s most productive farmland
II. Environmental Issues
• Russians must balance making profit with protecting the environment– Nuclear Power Plants are in decay;
leads to nuclear waste– Air Pollution from factories led to lower
life expectancy– Water Pollution from poor sewer
system, chemical weapons plants (from Cold War) & other sources
III. Politics
• Russia is a democracy– Democracy: people elect their leaders
• Russia is a federal republic– Federal Republic: power divided
between national & state government with president
• Democracy is dramatically different from Communism:– Leaders must follow same laws as
regular people– Leaders must accept criticism from
people
IV. Ethnic Challenges
• Majority Group: Russians, descendants of Slavs, are largest group
• Minority Group: 100 ethnic groups
*Majority group controls more wealth & power.
Chechnya, has experienced fighting over the years because the Chechen people want to form their own country.
V. Daily Life
• 70% of population is Russian Orthodox– Other religions: Muslims, Roman
Catholic, etc.• The leader of the Russian Orthodox
Church is the Patriarch.
VI. Russian Literature & Music• Stories passed down
orally: skazki• War & Peace by Leo
Tolstoy describes Russia’s defeat of Napoleon Bonaparte & France
• Peter Tchaikovsky composed The Nutcracker ballet & 1812 Overture which also describes Russia’s defeat of France
I. Geography
• Located south of Russia• Republics of Central Asia
– East of Caspian Sea– Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan,
Tajikistan, Turkmenistan• Republics of the Caucasus
– Located between Caspian Sea and Black Sea
– Azerbaijan, Armenia, Georgia
II. Republics of the Caucasus
• Armenia– First country to make Christianity official
religion (ca. 300 AD)– Capital, Yerevan, is one of world’s oldest
(founded in 782 BC)– Armenia was controlled by many different
nations, including the Ottoman Empire, who limited their freedoms & mistreated their people. During WWI, millions were deported by the OE, where historians estimate 600,000-1 million died of starvation. *This was the first genocide of the 20th century, though the Turks deny that it ever happened.
• Azerbaijan– Split by Armenia– Majority are
Muslims, which has caused conflicts with Armenian Christians
– Authoritarian government is corrupt
• Georgia– Known for resorts located along the
Black Sea– Has had conflicts with Russia after
gaining independence because Russia has recognized claims of independence (as of 2008) of two regions below
III. Central Asian Republics• Central Asian Republics have become of interest
to the rest of the world because of their vast natural resources
• Known for limiting citizens’ basic freedoms & violations of human rights are common
• All five countries are Muslim• Kazakhstan
– Largest of the former Soviet republics– Large amounts of natural resources & most stable of
all republics• Uzbekistan
– Most live in fertile valleys & oases– World’s largest cotton producer (child labor used to
harvest in many places)• Turkmenistan
– World’s largest reserves of natural gas• Kyrgyzstan• Tajikistan