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Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the largest country in the world by area, extending across eleven time zones and sharing land borders with fourteen countries. It is the world's ninth-most populous country and Europe's most populous country. Russia is a highly urbanised country including 16 population centres with over a million inhabitants. Its capital and largest city is Moscow. Saint Petersburg is Russia's second-largest city and its cultural capital.

The East Slavs emerged as a recognised group in Europe between the 3rd and 8th centuries CE. The first East Slavic state, Kievan Rus', arose in the 9th century, and in 988, it adopted Orthodox Christianity from the Byzantine Empire. Kievan Rus' ultimately disintegrated; the Grand Duchy of Moscow led the unification of Russian lands, leading to the proclamation of the Tsardom of Russia in 1547. By the early 18th century, Russia had vastly expanded through conquest, annexation, and the efforts of Russian explorers, developing into the Russian Empire, which remains the third-largest empire in history. However, with the Russian Revolution in 1917, Russia's monarchic rule was abolished and eventually replaced by the Russian SFSR—the world's first constitutionally socialist state. Following the Russian Civil War, the Russian SFSR established the Soviet Union with three other Soviet republics, within which it was the largest and principal constituent. At the expense of millions of lives, the Soviet Union underwent rapid industrialisation in the 1930s and later played a decisive role for the Allies in World War II by leading large-scale efforts on the Eastern Front. With the onset of the Cold War, it competed with the United States for ideological dominance and international influence. The Soviet era of the 20th century saw some of the most significant Russian technological achievements, including the first human-made satellite and the first human expedition into outer space. (Full article...)

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Konstantin Makovsky

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Siege of Kazan (1552)

Oladyi

Oladyi (Russian: оладьи [ɐˈɫadʲjɪ] pl., diminutive: оладушки, oladushki, sg. оладья, oladya [ɐˈɫadʲjə], Ukrainian: оладки, oladky) are small thick pancakes or fritters common in Russian and Ukrainian cuisines. The batter for oladyi is made from wheat or (nowadays more rarely) buckwheat flour, eggs, milk, salt, and sugar with yeast or baking soda. The batter may also contain kefir, soured milk or yoghurt. Oladyi may also include various additions, such as apple or raisins.

Oladyi are usually served with smetana (sour cream), as well as with sweet toppings such as jam, powidl, honey etc. Savoury versions may be served with caviar, similarly to blini. (Full article...)

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Khrushchev in 1962

Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev[b] (15 April [O.S. 3 April] 1894 – 11 September 1971) was First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1953 to 1964, and Chairman of the Council of Ministers (premier) from 1958 to 1964. During his rule, Khrushchev stunned the communist world with his denunciation of his predecessor Joseph Stalin and embarked on a policy of de-Stalinization with his key ally Anastas Mikoyan. He sponsored the early Soviet space program and enacted reforms in domestic policy. After some false starts, and a narrowly avoided nuclear war over Cuba, he conducted successful negotiations with the United States to reduce Cold War tensions. In 1964, the Kremlin circle stripped him of power, replacing him with Leonid Brezhnev as First Secretary and Alexei Kosygin as Premier.

Khrushchev was born in 1894 in a village in western Russia. He was employed as a metal worker during his youth, and he was a political commissar during the Russian Civil War. Under the sponsorship of Lazar Kaganovich, Khrushchev worked his way up the Soviet hierarchy. He originally supported Stalin's purges and approved thousands of arrests. In 1938, Stalin sent him to govern the Ukrainian SSR, and he continued the purges there. During what was known as the Great Patriotic War, Khrushchev was again a commissar, serving as an intermediary between Stalin and his generals. Khrushchev was present at the defense of Stalingrad, a fact he took great pride in. After the war, he returned to Ukraine before being recalled to Moscow as one of Stalin's close advisers. (Full article...)

In the news

18 October 2024 – Russian invasion of Ukraine
Foreign involvement in the Russian invasion of Ukraine, North Korea–Ukraine relations
South Korea's national intelligence agency says that North Korea has started sending troops to fight with Russia in Ukraine. South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol calls for a security meeting and says the international community must respond with "all available means". (BBC)
16 October 2024 – Russian invasion of Ukraine
Foreign involvement in the Russian invasion of Ukraine, North Korea–Ukraine relations
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says that North Korea has now become directly involved in the war in Ukraine, with a senior Ukrainian intelligence official saying that around 3,000 North Korean troops are currently in Russia and are training for deployment to Russian-occupied territories. (Politico)
United States and the Russian invasion of Ukraine
U.S. President Joe Biden announces a new $425 million military aid package for Ukraine, containing long-range weaponry. (The Kyiv Independent)

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Mikhail Kalashnikov
I would have preferred to have invented a machine that people could use and that would help farmers with their work - for example, a lawn-mower.
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