Russia's Empire Once Upon A Time

 Nadene Goldfoot                                                     

During my lifetime, Russia, the world's largest country, was even larger.  It was an empire referred to as USSR, standing for Union of Soviet Socialistic Republics.  As a teacher, our group copied it for "Uninterrupted Silent Sustained Reading." 

The Union of USSR consisted of   a federal union of fifteen national Communist republics.  It was the largest country in the world, covering over 22,402,200 square kilometres (8,649,500 sq mi) and spanning eleven time zones.

1. Russia            5. Kazakhstan  9. Moldova  13. Armenia

2. Ukraine           6.Georgia      10. Latvia      14. Turkmenia

3. Bylorussia       7. Azerbaijan 11. Kirgyzstan 15. Estonia

4. Uzbekestan    8. Lithuania   12. Tijikistan

Its 15 constituent republics gained full independence on 26 December 1991.  Boris Yeltzin was president of Russia at the time until 1999. Gorbachev had failed to forge an executive structure to implement the decisions of the U.S.S.R. Presidential Council and Security Council. 

Vladimir Putin took over May 7, 2012.   

The fall of the Soviet Union is a unique case in the history of empires: “Russia let most of the republics go without a fight, without a struggle.” While there were slogans and campaigns for independence among the Union republics in the months before the collapse, none were campaigning for the complete disintegration of the empire. Rather, each was struggling against the central authority to augment its own independent power base. Even the Baltic states, the most independently minded of the republics, operated along these lines. Other republics, such as those in Central Asia, were not struggling at all against the Union for political independence.

Ukraine became independent again when the Soviet Union dissolved in 1991. This started a period of transition to a market economy, in which Ukraine suffered an eight-year recession. Subsequently however, the economy experienced a high increase in GDP growth until it plunged during the Great Recession.  

A prolonged political crisis began on 21 November 2013, when president Viktor Yanukovych suspended preparations for the implementation of an association agreement with the European Union, instead choosing to seek closer ties with Russia. This decision resulted in the Euromaidan protests and later, the Revolution of Dignity. Yanukovych was then impeached by the Ukrainian parliament in February 2014. On 20 February, the Russo-Ukrainian War began when Russian forces entered Crimea. 

Ukrainian politician who served as prime minister (2002–05, 2006–07) and president (2010–14) of Ukraine.

Soon after, pro-Russian unrest enveloped the largely Russophone eastern and southern regions of Ukraine, from where  Viktor Yanukovych had drawn most of his support.  With Russia's Putin  support, Mr Yanukovych fled to Russia in February after protests in which more than 100 people died. "I will say it openly - he asked to be driven away to Russia, which we did," the Russian president said. He went on to criticise the pro-Western government in Kiev for using force against the rebels rather than conducting talks.

 A referendum in the largely ethnic Russian Ukrainian autonomous region of Crimea was held and Crimea was de facto annexed by Russia on 18 March 2014. The War in Donbas began in Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts of Ukraine involving pro-Ukrainian and pro-Russian Ukrainians and Russian mercenaries. The war stalled until 24 February 2022, when Russia launched a major invasion of much of the country.                              

Born January 25, 1978, picture from 2022 after being the real president for 3 years at age 44.  A month later, Russia invaded Ukraine.  He's been a war president  since February 24, 2022,   a year and entering into the 17th month.  January 15th 2019 was when COVID started in the world. He had to deal with both-being president and handling COVID.   

Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Jewish, was elected President in 2019.  "Zelenskyy grew up as a native Russian speaker in Kryvyi Rih, a major city of Dnipropetrovsk Oblast in central Ukraine. Prior to his acting career, he obtained a degree in law from the Kyiv National Economic University. He then pursued a career in comedy and created the production company Kvartal 95, which produced films, cartoons, and TV shows including the TV series Servant of the People, in which Zelenskyy played a fictional Ukrainian president. The series aired from 2015 to 2019 when he was 37,  and was immensely popular. A political party with the same name as the TV show was created in March 2018 by employees of Kvartal 95".

Resource:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dissolution_of_the_Soviet_Union

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/President_of_Russia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volodymyr_Zelenskyy

https://www.britannica.com/event/the-collapse-of-the-Soviet-Union/The-rise-of-Yeltsin-and-the-foundation-of-post-Soviet-Russia