Russia

In brief

Russia is a country in Eastern Europe. Its capital is Moscow. With 143.5 million inhabitants in 2025, it ranks 9th in the world by population, out of the 195 countries recognised by the UN. Its area is 17,098,242 km². It shares land borders with Azerbaijan, Belarus, China, Estonia, Finland, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Mongolia, North Korea, Norway, Poland and Ukraine.

GDP per capita stands at $17,547 (2025), 64th in the world. Life expectancy at birth is 73.4 years (2024). 75% of the population lives in cities.

History of Russia

Kievan Rus’, born in the 9th century, adopted Orthodox Christianity in 988. After Mongol rule, the principality of Moscow rose to dominance; Ivan the Terrible took the title of tsar in 1547. Peter the Great founded St Petersburg in 1703, and the empire spread to the Pacific. The 1917 revolution led to the USSR, which lost millions of lives in the Second World War and then dominated half of Europe during the Cold War. Since the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, Vladimir Putin has led the country from 2000. Russia annexed Crimea in 2014, an annexation the UN does not recognise, and invaded Ukraine in 2022.

Geography of Russia

The largest country in the world, with more than 17 million km² across eleven time zones, Russia stretches from the Baltic to the Pacific. The Urals separate its European part from Siberia. The Volga is Europe’s longest river, Lake Baikal the world’s deepest lake and Elbrus (5,642 m), in the Caucasus, Europe’s highest peak.

Map of Russia

Download the map (SVG)Interactive world map

Flag of Russia

The flag of Russia is red, white and blue. Its official proportions are 2:3 (height to width).

• White34%
• Red34%
• Blue33%

Share of the flag’s surface taken by each colour.

What the flag stands for

White, blue and red, a tricolour that appeared in the time of Peter the Great, first on merchant ships. Replaced by the red Soviet flag from 1917 to 1991, it was restored when the USSR collapsed.

Sources: Wikipedia, articles “Russia” and “Flag of Russia”.

Download the flag (SVG) All 33 red, white and blue flags All the flags of the world

Fact file

Economy and society