Russia

Russia (rus. Россия), officially — the Russian Federation (rus. Российская Федерация) is a country situated in Eastern Europe and North Asia. Russia is by far or by a considerable margin the largest country in the world by area, covering more than one-eighth of the Earth's inhabited land area. Russia has 11 time zones and 49 regions but they no longer use daylight savings.

Appearance
Russia is typically portrayed as tall (and sometimes slim) and is wearing an ushanka. They usually wear a (sometimes oversized) light blue striped shirt and jeans. Most fans when drawing them have them with bandages wrapped around their forearms, due to self-harm, which is seemingly linked to the death of their father, as many fans headcanon. They are often shown with a bottle of vodka. He's also represented with a military suit of commanders of the Russian Empire.

Personality
Different sources depict them differently. Mostly dark, quiet and "dangerous". A lot of people headcanon that they suffer from depression and is often drunk due to drinking too much vodka, they're often known for blaming themself for their past-self's death ( USSR).

Interests

 * Vodka (stereotype)
 * Ballet
 * Sunflower seeds
 * Cats
 * Space
 * Science (Especially Rockets and Chemistry)
 * Tetris
 * Ice Hockey
 * Soccer/Football
 * Dubstep and Hardbass
 * Eastern Orthodox Christianity

Other symbols
Besides flag, Russia has a coat of arms that depicts a double-headed eagle and an anthem.

Nicknames

 * Ruski (sometimes Russki)
 * Russ
 * Tripoloski
 * Russie
 * Commie (Nickname from America)

Etymology
The name "Россия" (Rossiya) came from the old Russian word "Русь" (Rus).

Origin of languages
Russian is an East Slavic language of the wider Indo-European family. It is a descendant of the language used in Kievan Rus', a loose conglomerate of East Slavic tribes from the late 9th to the mid 13th centuries.

Organizations and Affiliations

 * European Union (EU)
 * G20
 * G8
 * The Council of Europe
 * Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE)
 * Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC)
 * Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS)

Pre-Slavic inhabitants
The deepest levels of the Kostenki archaeological site near the Don River in Russia, which has been dated to at least 40,000 years ago. Arctic Russia was reached by 40,000 years ago. Later, vast steppes of Southern Russia were home to tribes of nomadic pastoralists.

In the 8th century BCE, Greek and Turkish merchants has reached the land and settled there

Kievan Rus
Kievan or Kyivan Rus'was a loose federation of East Slavic and Finno-Ugric peoples in Europe from the late 9th to the mid-13th century,under the reign of the Varangian Rurik dynasty.The modern nations of Belarus, Russia, and Ukraine all claim Kievan Rus' as their cultural ancestors, with Belarus and Russia deriving their names from it. Russia was ruled by the Rurikid dynasty until the 16th century. At its greatest extent, in the mid-11th century, it stretched from the White Sea in the north to the Black Sea in the south and from the headwaters of the Vistula in the west to the Taman Peninsula in the east,uniting the majority of East Slavic tribes.

ORIGIN

Prior to the emergence of Kievan Rus' in the 9th century AD, the lands between the Baltic Sea and Black Sea were primarily populated by eastern Slavic tribes.The northern region around Novgorod were the Ilmen Slav and neighboring Krivichi, who occupied territories surrounding the headwaters of the West Dvina, Dnieper, and Volga Rivers. To their north, in the Ladoga and Karelia regions, were the Finnic Chud tribe. In the south, in the area around Kiev, were the Poliane, a group of Slavicized tribes with Iranian origins, the Drevliane to the west of the Dnieper, and the Severiane to the east. To their north and east were the Vyatichi, and to their south was forested land settled by Slav farmers, giving way to steppelands populated by nomadic herdsmen.According to most scholars, the Varangians were Norman traders, consisting of Vikings, Danes and Balts,while Russian and Ukrainian nationalist historians generally argue that the Rus' were themselves Slavs.Nationalist accounts have suggested that the Rus' were present before the arrival of the Varangians,noting that only a handful of Scandinavian words can be found in modern Russian and that Scandinavian names in the early chronicles were soon replaced by Slavic names.

Foundation of the Kievan state

Rurik led the Rus' until his death in about 879, bequeathing his kingdom to his kinsman, Prince Oleg, as regent for his young son, Igor.In 880–82, Oleg led a military force south along the Dnieper river, capturing Smolensk and Lyubech before reaching Kiev, where he deposed and killed Askold and Dir, proclaimed himself prince, and declared Kiev the "mother of Rus' cities."Oleg set about consolidating his power over the surrounding region and the riverways north to Novgorod, imposing tribute on the East Slav tribes.In 883, he conquered the Drevlians, imposing a fur tribute on them. By 885 he had subjugated the Poliane, Severiane, Vyatichi, and Radimichs, forbidding them to pay further tribute to the Khazars. Oleg continued to develop and expand a network of Rus' forts in Slav lands, begun by Rurik in the north.

Mongolian invasion
The Mongol conquest of Kievan Rus' was part of the Mongol invasion of Europe, in which the Mongol Empire invaded and conquered Kievan Rus' and other Russian principalities in the 13th century AD, destroying numerous cities, including Ryazan, Kolomna, Moscow, Vladimir and Kiev.The campaign was heralded by the Battle of the Kalka River in May 1223, which resulted in a Mongol victory over the forces of several Rus' principalities. The Mongols retreated, having gathered their intelligence which was the purpose of the reconnaissance-in-force. A full-scale invasion of Rus' by Batu Khan followed, from 1237 to 1242. The invasion was ended by the Mongol succession process upon the death of Ögedei Khan. All Rus' principalities were forced to submit to Mongol rule and became vassals of the Golden Horde empire, some of which lasted until 1480. The invasion, facilitated by the beginning of the breakup of Kievan Rus' in the 13th century, had incalculable ramifications for the history of Eastern Europe, including the division of the East Slavic people into three separate nations: modern-day Russia, Ukraine and Belarus, and the rise of the Grand Duchy of Moscow.

Invasion of Batu Khan

The vast Mongol (Tartar) army of around 40,000 mounted archers, commanded by Batu Khan and Subutai, crossed the Volga River and invaded Volga Bulgaria in late 1236. It took them only a month to extinguish the resistance of the weak Volga Bulgars, the Cumans-Kipchaks and the Alans.In November 1237, Batu Khan sent his envoys to the court of Yuri II of Vladimir and demanded his submission. A month later, the Tartar hordes besieged Ryazan. After six days of bloody battle, the city was totally annihilated and inhabitants slaughtered. Alarmed by the news, Yuri  II sent his sons to detain the invaders, but they were defeated and ran for their lives. Having burnt down Kolomna and Moscow, the horde laid siege to Vladimir on February 4, 1238. Three days later, the capital of Vladimir-Suzdal was taken and burnt to the ground. The royal family perished in the fire, while the grand prince retreated northward. Crossing the Volga, Vladimir mustered a new army, which was encircled and totally annihilated by the Mongols in the Battle of the Sit River on March 4.Thereupon Batu Khan divided his army into smaller units, which ransacked fourteen cities of modern-day Russia: Rostov, Uglich, Yaroslavl, Kostroma, Kashin, Ksnyatin, Gorodets, Galich, Pereslavl-Zalessky, Yuriev-Polsky, Dmitrov, Volokolamsk, Tver, and Torzhok. Chinese siege engines were used by the Mongols under Tului to raze the walls of Rus' cities. The most difficult to take was the small town of Kozelsk, whose boy-prince Vasily, son of Titus, and inhabitants resisted the Mongols for seven weeks, killing 4,000.

Russians and Tatars
WIP

Government
The government of Russia is a "federal semi-presidential republic". The President and Prime Minister of Russia both share the roles head of state, and head of government, allowing some power to be distributed between the two (thus being a semi-presidential system). Still, the president holds some authority over the Prime Minister nevertheless. Like many other countries, Russia's government is split into three branches: the judicial, executive, and legislative branch. The Executive branch carries out laws, the judicial branch reviews laws, and the legislation makes and votes on different bills/laws to be put in. The president of Russia is Vladimir Putin, and the prime minister of Russia is Mikhail Mishustin. The president of Russia acts as the head of the executive branch and can be elected by the people to serve terms that last around 6 years. Like the USA, a president can only serve 2 terms. As president, they can veto laws or policies set forth by the legislative branch, and also work as commander-in-chief for the military.

Ukraine
Russia and Ukraine have a bilateral relation between the Russian Federation and Ukraine. The bilateral relationship between Russia and Ukraine formally started in the 1990s immediately upon the dissolution of the Soviet Union, of which both Russia and Ukraine had been founding constituent republics.

Interactions between the two areas of Russia and Ukraine developed on a formal basis from the 17th century (note the Treaty of Pereyaslav between Moscow and Bohdan Khmelnytsky's cossacks in 1654), but international-level relations ceased when Catherine the Great liquidated the autonomy of the Cossack Hetmanate in 1764. For a short period of time soon after the communist 1917 October Revolution two states interacted again.

In 1920, Soviet Russian forces overran Ukraine and relations between the two states transitioned from international to internal ones within the Soviet Union, founded in 1922. After the Soviet Union's dissolution in 1991, Russia and Ukraine have undergone periods of ties, tensions, and outright hostility.

Geography
Geographically, Russia shares land borders with Norway, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Belarus, Ukraine, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, China, Mongolia, and North Korea. Since Russia has Kaliningrad, it then shares borders with Lithuania and Poland. It has an area of 17,125,191 km2 and occupies 11 time zones. Climates in Russia can range from humid continental climates (around Moscow or St. Petersburg) to extremely cold and bitter in places such as Siberia. Due to Russia's immense size, there are also many different physical regions in the country. Some could include: The European Plain (located in the Western side of Russia), the Caucasus Mountains (a range of mountains located in the southwest region of Russia), and the Kolyma Lowlands (an area in far Eastern Russia which is surrounded by many other mountain ranges which block it off from the volcanic Pacific area of the Eastern tip of Russia [the Kamchatka Ranges that stretch along an-almost island part of Russia that sits on the Ring of Fire, causing it to experience much volcanic activity]). Other extremely massive regions of Russia that could be credited are the Siberian Taiga (a huge area of forest that covers almost all of Eastern Russia, it is the largest forest region on Earth, and suffers from harsh winters) and the Steppe region, an area of Southern Russia that contains many plains. The north of Russia is quite dangerous to inhabit, containing freezing cold temperatures and desert-like tundra's which make it practically impossible to navigate. Around these areas, and most of Russia in general out of the Western block, contains massive amounts of oil, which is the reason Russia is the #1 exporter of oil in the world. Interesting facts about Russia's geography could include:


 * They have the largest currently active volcano, Kluchevskoy.
 * They have the most massive swamp in the world, the Russian Great Vasyugan swamp.
 * The Ural Mountains located in Russia are the oldest in the world.
 * The Kazakh and Russian land border is the longest in the world.
 * Obviously, Russia is the largest country in the world with an area of 17,125,191 km2.

Family

 * Ukraine — sibling
 * Bulgaria — sibling
 * Belarus — sibling
 * Slovakia — sibling
 * Slovenia — sibling
 * Serbia — cousin-sibling
 * Montenegro — cousin-sibling
 * North Macedonia — cousin-sibling
 * Poland — cousin-sibling
 * Arctic — cousin-sibling
 * Antarctica — child
 * Armenia — stepchild
 * Azerbaijan — stepchild
 * Estonia — stepchild
 * Finland — stepchild
 * Georgia — stepchild
 * Hungary — stepchild
 * Kazakhstan — stepchild
 * Kyrgyzstan — stepchild
 * Latvia — stepchild
 * Lithuania — stepchild
 * Moldova — stepchild
 * Tajikistan — stepchild
 * Turkmenistan — stepchild
 * Uzbekistan — stepchild
 * Germany — adopted child

Friends

 * China — "You're a great friend but you're pretty shady"
 * Kazakhstan — "You help me launch space rockets."
 * Belarus — "Great support."
 * Malaysia — "Let me get you into space! And blame Ukraine that she destroy your plane, not me!"
 * Costa Rica — "b a n a n a s"
 * Egypt
 * Serbia — "Great friend, keep doing that!"
 * Greece and Cyprus — "Best friends in the European Union!"
 * Iceland


 * Mongolia — "My cute little buddy."
 * Algeria — "great strategic partner, we can be competitors sometimes, however, they're always my dear close comrade"
 * Morocco
 * Tunisia
 * Laos — "a great friend since WWII!"
 * Cuba — "same with Laos"
 * Philippines — "Glad that you finally know not to get involved with them. Also, you have the best president!"
 * Vietnam — "a great friend! I helped him win against the capitalist!"
 * Cambodia
 * South Africa - “You’re one of my best friends! I’m glad we’re allies and I hope we can still carry on being like this.”

Neutral

 * Austria — "Good friend and one of the best Natural gas deliveries in Europe!"
 * Azerbaijan — "Yes we are friends but, I think you must end the conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh"
 * Denmark
 * Germany — "You were one of the nicest European countries to me. But after the annexation of Crimea, you no longer want to be friends."
 * France — "Not really a good friend. We've had our differences."
 * Portugal
 * Czech Republic — "I know what my I did to you and your sibling and that you're hurt, and I'm sorry for that. I actually like your drinks."
 * Bulgaria — "You really changed..."
 * Romania
 * Slovakia
 * South Korea — "I damaged you, but now I like your chocolate pie and Dokdo was invaded in our country, I'm sorry."
 * Norway
 * Finland
 * Hungary
 * Ireland
 * Italy, Portugal, and  Spain — "We have a strong affectionate relationship and I want us to continue maintaining it!"
 * Turkey
 * European Union
 * NATO

Enemies

 * Belgium
 * Canada
 * Estonia
 * Latvia
 * Lithuania
 * Sweden
 * Poland
 * Ukraine — "We have a so called 'sibling rivalry' for centuries now. We've had our differences and had many conflicts. Crimea is mine by the way, they chose to be with me so accept that"
 * United Kingdom
 * United States — "We've been enemies for as long as I can remember. We could've been close friends if it weren't for that missile of yours launched and blow up my city. Also, stop getting involve into the things you're not supposed to be. Your 'helping' of yours is making it worse so stop!"
 * Netherlands
 * Georgia
 * Kosovo — "You're not a real country, Kosovo is Serbia!"
 * Chechen Republic of Ichkeria — "I beat you!"

Puppet States
(list of assumed puppet states)


 * Abkhazia
 * South Ossetia
 * Tranistria
 * Artsakh (Armenia-Azerbaijan)
 * Donetsk People’s Republic
 * Luhansk People’s Republic

Past Versions

 * Old Great Bulgaria
 * Khanate of Khazar
 * Mongol Empire (partly)


 * Kievan Rus
 * Volga Bulgarian
 * Novgorod Republic 
 * Northern Mughal State
 * Grand Duchy of Vladimir
 * Muscovite Russia
 * Tsardom of Russia
 * Russian Empire
 * Democratic Federal Republic of Russia
 * Soviet Federal Republic
 * Russian State
 * Third Reich (partly)


 * USSR/Russian SFSR (enemy)

Belarus
Russia's sibling or friend, Belarus, is extremely close to them, some of the people who don't headcanon them as family-related would ship them, in Belarus most people speak Russian, they take lots of inspiration from Russia, however this type of relationship has given Belarus a sort of "rebellious"/break-away mentality to be more Belarusian and they're trying to get back to their own culture, but they're for the foreseeable future, will always be by Russia's side they will always be at their corner cheering them own like a cheerleader.

North Korea
Russia was one of the few countries that interacted with the DPRK after the Korean war. North Korea idolized the U.S.S.R taking lots of inspiration from him early on and is one of North Korea's few friends. However, North Korea's nukes and recent behavior has made Russia step back a little, along with China.

Serbia
Serbia and Russia have a strong diplomatic relationship.Both countries have the same religion and the same struggles.Russia often gives military supplies to help Serbia's army become stronger.They both hate N.A.T.O and America.Serbia is often portrayed as the younger,smaller brother/sister.

Germany
Russia helped liberate Germany in 1812–15 in the Napoleonic Wars, and the two were generally friendly for a century, especially during the time of Otto von Bismarck who established the League of Three Emperors in 1873 with Russia, Germany, and Austria-Hungary. Germany fought against Russia in World War I (1914–1918). Relations were warm in the 1920s, very cold in the 1930s, friendly in 1939–41, and then turned into war to the death in 1941–45.The relationship between the two countries became really negative after the annexation of Crimea

Mongolia
Celebrates victories days together. And drinks on the celebration day.

Trivia

 * Russia and Germany are usually represented as two tragic countries that have suffered the darkest dictatorships of the twentieth century in Europe (Third Reich and USSR). However, in their respective future versions, Germany is positively represented while Russia is negatively represented.
 * Some fans assume that Russia's parent is France. Probably, despite the traditional rivalry between the two countries, due to similarities with their respective revolutions.
 * Russia and Spain are often represented as distant counterparts of the European continent to each other. Popularly, it is often considered that political positions should not be a problem to get to know each other better between Moscow and Madrid. This may also refer to the similarities of the Russian and Spanish Empires. Both countries are the biological parents of Alaska and Antarctica.
 * They're mostly depicted with vodka, a stereotypical drink associated with Russia.
 * It's due to the fact that every Russian person (especially men) consumes an average of 18 liters of vodka per year, which is twice the amount allowed medically.
 * In Russia, the death rate exceeds the birth rate.
 * Most deaths are related to vodka (Alcoholic drinks in general) and the homicide rate, given that Russia has the highest rate of 9.7 murders per 100,000 people, more than that in the USA, which amounts to 4.7 murders per 100,000 people.
 * Some describe Russia as a suicidal person due to the fact that suicide rates are very high, as they recorded the second-highest suicide rate in WHO data after Lithuania.
 * Russia is actually bigger than Pluto.
 * Russia has the highest rank on global cat ownership (59%), they love cats more than anyone on the planet.
 * It has 9 time zones and is the only country in the world to have so.
 * As a result of the dispute between Russia and Japan over the Kuril Islands, both didn't sign a peace agreement to end the war that occurred between them during WWII, so legally there's still a war between them.
 * The mayor of Megon, a city in Russia, has passed a decree banning the apology.
 * A number of Russian fans began to reject that Russia is paired with many countries, particularly the United States or Mexico, and currently, they -but not all of them- only consider Serbia as the true love of Russia. These criticisms come mainly because the character Russia is precisely homophobic and is paired in gay/lesbian relationship with other countries for the mere fact of being.