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of the Soviet Union The Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (called Russian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic at the time) to ether !ith the U"rainian# $yelorussian# and Transcaucasion Soviet Socialist Republics# formed the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR)# or Soviet Union# on %& 'ecember ()**+ ,ut of the (republics that !ould ma"e up the USSR# the lar est in si.e and over half of the total USSR population !as the Russian SFSR# !hich came to dominate the union for its entire /)0year history+ Follo!in 1enin2s death in ()*3# a troi"a !as desi nated to overn the Soviet Union+ Ho!ever# 4oseph Stalin# an elected 5eneral Secretary of the Communist 6arty# mana ed to suppress all opposition roups !ithin the party and consolidate po!er in his hands+ 1eon Trots"y# the main proponent of !orld revolution# !as e7iled from the Soviet Union in ()*)# and Stalin2s idea of Socialism in ,ne Country became the primary line+ The continued internal stru le in the $olshevi" party culminated in the 5reat 6ur e# a period of mass repressions in ()%89%:# durin !hich hundreds of thousands of people !ere e7ecuted# includin ori inal party members and military leaders accused of coup d2;tat plots+</3= Soviet T0%3>8/s and infantry advance past a destroyed 6an.er ?@+ Ahar"ov# Bu ust ()3% Under Stalin2s leadership# the overnment launched a planned economy# industrialisation of the lar ely rural country# and collectivi.ation of its a riculture+ 'urin this period of rapid economic and social chan e# millions of people !ere sent to penal labor camps#</-= includin many political convicts for their opposition to Stalin2s ruleC millions !ere deported and e7iled to remote areas of the Soviet Union+</-= The transitional disor anisation of the country2s a riculture# combined !ith the harsh state policies and a drou ht# led to the Soviet famine of ()%*9()%%+<//= The Soviet Union# thou h !ith a heavy price# !as transformed from a lar ely a rarian economy to a maDor industrial po!erhouse in a short span of time+ The Bppeasement policy of 5reat $ritain and France to!ards Bdolf Hitler2s anne7ation of Bustria and C.echoslova"ia did not stem an increase in the po!er of Ea.i 5ermany and put a threat of !ar to the Soviet Union+ Bround the same time the Third Reich allied !ith the Fmpire of 4apan# a rival of the USSR in the Far Fast and an open enemy of the USSR in the Soviet94apanese $order Gars in ()%:9%)+ ?n Bu ust ()%)# after another failure of attempts to establish an anti0Ea.i alliance !ith $ritain and France# the Soviet overnment decided to improve relations !ith 5ermany by concludin the Molotov0Ribbentrop 6act# pled in non0a ression bet!een the t!o countries and dividin their spheres of influence in Fastern Furope+ Ghile Hitler conHuered 6oland# France and other countries actied on sin le front at the start of Gorld Gar ??# the USSR !as able to build up its military and claim some of the former territories of the Russian Fmpire as a result of the Soviet invasion of 6oland# Ginter Gar and the occupation of the $altic states+ ,n ** 4une ()3(# Ea.i 5ermany bro"e the non0a ression treaty and invaded the Soviet Union !ith the lar est and most po!erful invasion force in human history#</8= openin the lar est theater of Gorld Gar ??+ Blthou h the 5erman army had considerable early success# their attac" !as halted in the $attle of Mosco!+ SubseHuently the 5ermans !ere dealt maDor defeats first at the $attle of Stalin rad in the !inter of ()3*9 3%#</:= and then in the $attle of Aurs" in the summer of ()3%+ Bnother 5erman failure !as the Sie e of 1enin rad# in !hich the city !as fully bloc"aded on land bet!een ()3(933 by 5erman and Finnish forces# and suffered starvation and more than a million deaths# but never surrendered+</)= Under Stalin2s administration and the leadership of such commanders as 5eor y Ihu"ov and Aonstantin Ro"ossovs"y# Soviet forces too" Fastern Furope in ()3393- and captured $erlin in May ()3-+ ?n Bu ust ()3- the Soviet Brmy ousted the 4apanese from China2s Manchu"uo and Eorth Aorea# contributin to the allied victory over 4apan+ First human to travel into space# Juri 5a arin The ()3(93- period of Gorld Gar ?? is "no!n in Russia as the K5reat 6atriotic GarK+ 'urin this conflict#
!hich included many of the most lethal battle operations in human history# Soviet military and civilian deaths !ere (&+/ million and (-+) million respectively#<8&= accountin for about a third of all Gorld Gar ?? casualties+ The full demo raphic loss to the Soviet peoples !as even reater+<8(= The Soviet economy and infrastructure suffered massive devastation#<8*= but the Soviet Union emer ed as an ac"no!led ed military superpo!er on the continent+ The Red Brmy occupied Fastern Furope after the !ar# includin Fast 5ermany+ 'ependent socialist overnments !ere installed in the Fastern $loc satellite states+ $ecomin the !orld2s second nuclear !eapons po!er# the USSR established the Garsa! 6act alliance and entered into a stru le for lobal dominance# "no!n as the Cold Gar# !ith the United States and EBT,+ The Soviet Union supported revolutionary movements across the !orld# includin the ne!ly formed 6eople2s Republic of China# the 'emocratic 6eople2s Republic of Aorea and# later on# the Republic of Cuba+ Si nificant amounts of the Soviet resources !ere allocated in aid to the other socialist states+<8%= Bfter Stalin2s death and a short period of collective rule# ne! leader Ei"ita Ahrushchev denounced the cult of personality of Stalin and launched the policy of de0Stalini.ation+ The penal labor system !as reformed and many prisoners !ere released and rehabilitated (many of them posthumously)+<83= The eneral easement of repressive policies became "no!n later as the Ahrushchev Tha!+ Bt the same time# tensions !ith the United States hei htened !hen the t!o rivals clashed over the deployment of the U+S+ 4upiter missiles in Tur"ey and Soviet missiles in Cuba+ Russian Federation Main article: History of Russia (())*9present) Mosco! ?nternational $usiness Center under construction $oris Jeltsin !as elected the 6resident of Russia in 4une ())(# in the first direct presidential election in Russian history+ 'urin and after the Soviet disinte ration# !ide0ran in reforms includin privati.ation and mar"et and trade liberali.ation !ere underta"en#<88= includin radical chan es alon the lines of Kshoc" therapyK as recommended by the United States and ?nternational Monetary Fund+<8:= Bll this resulted in a maDor economic crisis# characteri.ed by -&L decline of both 5'6 and industrial output bet!een ())&9)-+<88=<8)= The privati.ation lar ely shifted control of enterprises from state a encies to individuals !ith inside connections in the overnment+ Many of the ne!ly rich moved billions in cash and assets outside of the country in an enormous capital fli ht+<:&= The depression of the economy led to the collapse of social servicesC the birth rate plummeted !hile the death rate s"yroc"eted+<:(= Millions plun ed into poverty# from (+-L level of poverty in the late Soviet era# to %)93)L by mid0())%+<:*= The ())&s sa! e7treme corruption and la!lessness# the rise of criminal an s and violent crime+<:%= The ())&s !ere pla ued by armed conflicts in the Eorth Caucasus# both local ethnic s"irmishes and separatist ?slamist insurrections+ From the time Chechen separatists declared independence in the early ())&s# an intermittent uerrilla !ar has been fou ht bet!een the rebel roups and the Russian military+ Terrorist attac"s a ainst civilians carried out by separatists# most notably the Mosco! theater hosta e crisis and $eslan school sie e# caused hundreds of deaths and dre! !orld!ide attention+ Russia too" up the responsibility for settlin the USSR2s e7ternal debts# even thou h its population made up Dust half of the population of the USSR at the time of its dissolution+<:3= Hi h bud et deficits caused the ()): Russian financial crisis<:-= and resulted in a further 5'6 decline+<88= ,n %( 'ecember ()))# 6resident Jeltsin une7pectedly resi ned# handin the post to the recently appointed 6rime Minister# @ladimir 6utin# !ho then !on the *&&& presidential election+ 6utin suppressed the Chechen insur ency# althou h sporadic violence still occurs throu hout the Eorthern Caucasus+ Hi h oil prices and the initially !ea" currency follo!ed by increasin domestic demand# consumption# and investments has helped the economy ro! for nine strai ht years# improvin the standard of livin and increasin Russia2s
influence on the !orld sta e+<:/= Ghile many reforms made durin the 6utin presidency have been enerally critici.ed by Gestern nations as un0democratic#<:8= 6utin2s leadership over the return of order# stability# and pro ress has !on him !idespread popularity in Russia+<::= ,n * March *&&:# 'mitry Medvedev !as elected 6resident of Russia# !hilst 6utin became 6rime Minister+ 6utin returned to the presidency follo!in the *&(* presidential elections# and Medvedev !as appointed 6rime Minister+