NEAR ABROAD is a geopolitical reality that emerged after the collapse of the USSR. This concept refers to the former Soviet republics USSR who became sovereign states. In addition to the Russian Federation, neighboring countries include: Azerbaijan, Armenia, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Ukraine, Estonia. Apart from three countries - Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia - all the others form the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS).

A feature of the legal nature of the CIS is the fact that constituent documents do not answer the question about the status of the CIS, noting only that “The Commonwealth is not a state and does not have supranational powers” ​​(Article 1 of the CIS Charter). A fundamentally important provision characterizing the Commonwealth is that each CIS member state retains its sovereignty in full. This leads to the principles on which the relations of the CIS countries are based - respect for each other's independence, territorial integrity and free will, non-interference in internal affairs, voluntary participation in common events.

The CIS member countries have already concluded several hundred bilateral and over a thousand multilateral agreements. Legal basis activities of the CIS constitute the norms international law, which are contained both in concluded agreements and in acts adopted by the bodies of the Commonwealth.

Within the CIS, closer relations are developing between Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Russian Federation. And between the Republic of Belarus and the Russian Federation on April 2, 1996, the Agreement on the Formation of the Community was concluded. In April-May 1997, the Treaty and Charter were signed, transforming this Community into the Union of Belarus and the Russian Federation.

Three states 3. b., not included in the CIS, occupy a special position. Although they support normal interstate relations on the part of the CIS member countries, it still cannot be said that these relations are at the same level as between the CIS states. Between the Russian Federation, on the one hand, and Latvia and Estonia, on the other, there is even a certain tension in relations due to violations of the rights of Russians and the Russian-speaking population in these countries and territorial claims.

The borders between the CIS countries remain transparent and freedom of movement is maintained. However, contacts between relatives and friends living in different countries Commonwealths have declined sharply. There are also customs barriers. Russians and Russian-speaking people leave some countries. In general, relations between neighboring countries abroad cannot be called cloudless.

Tavadov G.T. Ethnology. Modern dictionary-reference book. M., 2011, p. 122-123.

After the collapse of the USSR, Russian foreign policy had to master a completely new direction for it - the so-called near abroad. The development of Russia's relations with the former Soviet republics proceeded, on the one hand, within the framework of the Commonwealth of Independent States, and on the other, along the path of developing bilateral relations.

In relations with neighboring countries, Russia from the very beginning faced many problems, some of which it inherited from the USSR (the fate of debts Soviet Union, withdrawal of troops from the Baltic states, the problem of control over the Soviet nuclear potential).

An important aspect of the Commonwealth's activities was determining the fate of nuclear weapons former USSR. In July 1992, nine CIS states (Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Ukraine, Moldova and Turkmenistan) confirmed that they support Russia’s participation in the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons as its owner and stated that they are ready accede to the Treaty as non-nuclear weapon states. Thus, Russia became the full legal successor of the USSR on the issue of possession of nuclear weapons. At the same time, we were talking about all nuclear weapons of the former USSR, including those located in the territories of Ukraine, Belarus and Kazakhstan. In May 1993, a protocol was signed in Lisbon in which the leaders of Kazakhstan, Ukraine and Belarus guaranteed the elimination of nuclear weapons on their territory. Russia, the USA, Kazakhstan and Belarus ratified the Treaty, but Ukraine demanded guarantees of its security. In January 1994, in Moscow, the presidents of the United States, Russia and Ukraine adopted a trilateral statement in which appropriate guarantees were given.

By 1994 Russian troops were completely withdrawn from the Baltic countries, but other, no less acute problems remained in Russia’s relations with these countries. After the collapse of the USSR, over 25 million Russians lived outside Russia against their will. Many of them found themselves in difficult situations. Most governments of neighboring countries pursued a policy of priority development of the so-called titular nations. All this caused interethnic tension and complicated the situation of our compatriots. They faced manifestations of everyday nationalism, personnel discrimination, and suffered from the arbitrariness of administrative, law enforcement and judicial authorities at the local level. Their rights were often infringed upon when resolving issues of education, medical care, employment, religion, pensions, entrepreneurial activity, and registration of various types of documents. Their situation was especially difficult in Latvia, Estonia, Kazakhstan and a number of Central Asian republics. The Russian leadership in those years never developed a clear, consistent approach to the problem of compatriots abroad, which ultimately led to increased immigration. Despite the difficult economic situation in Russia in the period from 1991 to 1998, according to the Russian Foreign Ministry, about 3 million compatriots returned to Russia from the CIS and Baltic countries.

The main problems that complicated Russian-Ukrainian relations were the problems of Crimea, Black Sea Fleet and a number of political factors (nuclear weapons, attitude towards NATO). Due to disagreements over Sevastopol and the Black Sea Fleet, the treaty of friendship and cooperation between Russia and Ukraine was signed and ratified only in 1998.

Conflicts on ethnic grounds that broke out in Moldova (1992) and Georgia (1992) hampered the stable development of the Commonwealth and complicated Russia's interaction with the CIS states. The search for tools to resolve them led to the signing in March 1992 of the Agreement on groups of military observers and collective peacekeeping forces in the CIS. By 1993-1994 The phase of armed confrontation in most hot spots of the post-Soviet space has ended.

For some of the Commonwealth countries - its southern flank, in the mid-90s, the Taliban regime in Afghanistan became a real source of instability and threats. In Tajikistan, the Islamic opposition openly appealed for help from the new leaders of Afghanistan. Large quantities of drugs were smuggled across the southern borders into the territory of the CIS countries. Combined with increasing internal instability in Central Asia all this stimulated the CIS states to take steps to create an effective security system. The deployment of border forces to the Tajik-Afghan border and Russia’s cooperation in protecting the external borders of the CIS with Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan made it possible to maintain Russian control over the situation on the distant approaches to its own borders.

May 15, 1992 by Armenia. Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, the Russian Federation, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan signed the Collective Security Treaty (CST). Later Azerbaijan and Georgia joined it. In 1999, thanks to the efforts of Russian diplomacy, the treaty was extended for another term, but at the same time three of the nine participants - Azerbaijan, Georgia and Uzbekistan - withdrew from it. Disagreements between the parties to the treaty and a lack of financial resources led to the fact that a common military-strategic space based on the CST was never formed. But the agreement facilitated the conclusion of bilateral agreements between Russia and the participants of the CST and made it possible to regulate the status of Russian military facilities on the territory of the former Soviet republics. In addition, the CST played a positive role as a legal basis for the creation of the CIS Joint Air Defense System, the agreement on which was signed on February 10, 1995.

During 1992-1994. The composition of the CIS changed. In October 1992, Azerbaijan left the Commonwealth, but returned to it again in 1994, after Heydar Aliyev came to power. In 1994, Georgia joined the Commonwealth.

In the second half of the 90s. There have been trends towards closer economic integration of Russia with a number of CIS countries. On March 29, 1996, Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan signed the Treaty on Deepening Economic Integration and the Quadripartite Customs Union. Russia has a special relationship with Belarus. Practical steps On the path to integration of the two countries, the agreement on the Union of Russia and Belarus signed in April 1997 and the Declaration on the Creation of the Union State adopted in December 1998.

In its development, the CIS did not live up to expectations, which were essentially too high, and did not turn into a full-fledged integration structure. Many important initiatives of the CIS countries remained unrealized. Different economic opportunities, socio-political systems, national interests, distrust and suspicion of Moscow served as a serious obstacle to the further development of the Commonwealth.

Russia had to get used to the new role of the former republics of the Soviet Union and to the fact that now its relations with its neighbors were no longer just a Russian monopoly, but that they were connected with the policies and interests of many other states. Russia has often wavered, moving from non-intervention to attempts to regain influence. In Russia’s relations with some countries, too much negative and difficult experience has been accumulated, which negatively influenced the development of relations. Russia as the legal successor of both the Soviet Union and Russian Empire, was unwittingly forced to bear responsibility for past deformations, mistakes and even crimes. In addition to non-CIS countries (Poland), this concerned primarily the Baltic countries.

Despite obvious growing pains, the Commonwealth played a stabilizing role in the formation of newly independent states. The creation of the CIS helped prevent the spontaneous collapse of the country and the development of the situation according to the “Yugoslav scenario.” The process of sovereignization of the former Soviet republics participating in the Commonwealth took place in an orderly manner and did not cause deep geopolitical upheavals. Within the framework of the Commonwealth, it was possible to mitigate the social and economic consequences of the collapse of a single state, to peacefully gradually resolve issues related to the division of property and debts of the former USSR, the formation of borders and national armies, transport and financial problems, the establishment of visa and customs regimes, etc.

The “Yeltsin era” is a complex and contradictory time. Inspiring optimism and good hopes at the beginning, it ultimately ended in disappointment for many. “Kremlin games”, the influence of oligarchs, financial pyramids, corruption and growing crime remain in our memory characteristic features 90s. Today, researchers do not, and cannot have, an unambiguous assessment of B.N. Yeltsin as a statesman. Historians and liberal-oriented politicians consider the main merit of the first president to be that he did not allow communist revenge and ensured the irreversibility of democratic changes, although many of these changes, initiated by the authorities from above, due to a number of both subjective and objective circumstances, took the form of sluggish reforms and did not were completed within the framework of the almost ten-year “Yeltsin era”. B.N. Yeltsin's opponents, people who adhere to previous socialist values, believe that he not only destroyed the Soviet Union, but with his reforms plunged the economy into crisis and the people into poverty.

From our point of view, to the obvious merits of Boris Yeltsin as a politician and a person, it is necessary to add his timely, and for many unexpected, departure from the political scene, as well as the optimal choice in those conditions as a successor of a politician who, on the one hand, ensured continuity, and on the other hand, as the practice of almost four years of V.V. Putin’s presidency shows, he truly became a guarantor of stability in society and a politician who not only energetically took up reforms that, for one reason or another, did not take place under Yeltsin, but also laid the foundation for correcting numerous mistakes , allowed under his predecessor by both the legislative and executive powers.

The term “near abroad countries” in Russia has recently come to mean the republics of the former USSR (except, of course, the Russian Federation itself). Thus, these include Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Belarus, Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan. Of these countries, Belarus, Ukraine, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, and the Russian Federation are part of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS); Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania were not included in this association; in Moldova, the issue of joining the CIS has not yet been finally resolved.

Of all neighboring countries, the share of the main population in Armenia is the highest - 93%. This is followed by: Azerbaijan (83%), Lithuania (80%), Belarus (78%), Ukraine (73%), Turkmenistan (72%), Uzbekistan (71%), Georgia (70%), Moldova (64%), Tajikistan (62%), Estonia (62%), Kyrgyzstan (52%), Latvia (52%), Kazakhstan (40%)". In the Russian Federation, the main people make up 82% of the total population. Only Armenia has a relatively homogeneous ethnic composition of the population. In addition, a sharp predominance of the main people is characteristic of seven more neighboring countries: Azerbaijan, Lithuania, Belarus, Ukraine, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Georgia. In three countries (Moldova, Tajikistan, Estonia), the proportion of the main people in the entire population is slightly less than two thirds, in two countries (Kyrgyzstan, Latvia) - slightly more than half, and in one country (Kazakhstan) - only two fifths.

In the 30 years between the 1959 and 1989 censuses, the share of indigenous people in the population of the republics of the former USSR underwent significant changes. While in Kazakhstan, the republics of Central Asia and Transcaucasia, this share has increased greatly over the 30th anniversary (in Azerbaijan from 67 to 83%, in Kyrgyzstan - from 41 to 52%, etc.), in Belarus and Ukraine ( as, indeed, in the Russian Federation), the share of the main people decreased slightly (from 81 to 78% and from 77 to 73%, respectively). An even more noticeable decrease in this share occurred in Latvia and Estonia (from 62 to 52% and from 75 to 62%, respectively).

The increase in the percentage of indigenous people in the population of Kazakhstan, as well as in the population of the Central Asian and Transcaucasian republics, occurred due to a much higher natural increase among these peoples than among representatives of other national groups who moved here, which will be discussed below. As for the decrease in the share of the main ethnic groups in the population of Belarus, Ukraine, Estonia and Latvia, it is primarily associated with migration to these republics from other parts of the former USSR.

Let us dwell briefly on the features of the ethnic structure in neighboring countries, combining some of them by historical and cultural areas.

In the Baltic states - Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania- peoples are represented first of all the Baltic group of the Indo-European family and the Finno-Ugric group of the Ural-Yukaghir family. In the first case, these are Lithuanians (2.9 million) and Latvians (1.4 million) - the main peoples of the respective states, in the second - Estonians (about 1 million) - indigenous ethnic group of Estonia, and the Livs are a small people living on west coast Latvia, near Ventspils.

In all three Baltic states there is a fairly wide representation Slavic group Indo-European family, which includes Russians, Belarusians, Ukrainians and Poles. Russians in each of these countries the Baltics are the largest national minority. In Latvia there are over 0.9 million (34% of the total population), in Estonia - about 0.5 million (30%). The absolute and relative numbers of Russians in Lithuania are smaller (more than 0.3 million and 9%, respectively), but even here they exceed in number any other national minority.

Belarusians They also live in all the Baltic states. In Latvia they are the second largest national minority after Russians (4% of the population), in Lithuania and Estonia they are the third (2% each).

Ukrainians- the second largest national minority in Estonia (3% of the population), the third in Latvia (3%) and the fourth in Lithuania (1%).

Poles They are quite widely represented in Lithuania, where they are the second largest national minority (7% of the population), and in Latvia (2%).

The number of all other nationalities in the Baltic states is small.

Three of the four most significant national minorities in the Baltic states - Russians, Poles and Belarusians - form the absolute majority of the population in some places in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. Thus, Russians predominate in the Narva region of Estonia, form compact populations in the Rezekne, Daugavpils and some other regions of Latvia, and the Poles have a majority in the Vilnius and Šalcininka regions of Lithuania.

IN Belarus completely dominates, to which 98% of the total population of the country belongs. In addition to Belarusians (8 million), the Slavic group is represented by Russians (1.3 million, or 13% of the population), Poles (0.4 million, or 4%) and Ukrainians (0.3 million, or 3%). Russians and Ukrainians are concentrated mainly in cities, but there are also several very small Russian and Ukrainian enclaves along the eastern and southern borders of Belarus, respectively. Poles are concentrated primarily in the Grodno region (72% of all Poles in Belarus), where they form 26% of the total population. There are also compact areas populated predominantly by Poles in the western part of the Minsk and in the far west of the Vitebsk regions.

In Ukraine also sharply prevails Slavic group of the Indo-European family, covering 97% of the total population. In addition to Ukrainians (37 million), it includes Russians (11 million, or 22% of the population), Belarusians (0.4 million, or about 1%), Bulgarians and Poles (0.2 million each, or together about 1%) . Significant population groups also include Jews (0.5 million), Moldovans (0.3 million), Hungarians (about 0.2 million), Romanians (over 0.1 million), Greeks (0.1 million) and representatives of some others nationalities. The number of Crimean Tatars, who, according to the 1989 census, numbered only 47 thousand people, has now increased to almost 200 thousand people as a result of intensive immigration.

Russians, which in Ukraine as a whole, as noted, form over a fifth of the population, in some regions they make up a much higher percentage of the population. This is primarily Crimea, where Russians form 67% of the population, while Ukrainians make up only 26%. The share of Russians is also high in Lugansk (45%), Donetsk (44%), Kharkov (33%), Zaporozhye (32%) and Odessa (27%) regions.

Jews of Ukraine concentrated mainly in major cities, primarily in Kyiv (21% of them total number in Ukraine) and Odessa, Moldovans - in Odessa (45%) and Chernivtsi (26%) regions, Hungarians - in Transcarpathian (95%), Romanians - in Chernivtsi (74%), Greeks - in Donetsk (85%).

In Moldova in addition to Moldovans (2.8 million), belonging to Romanesque group Indo-European family, Ukrainians (0.6 million, or 14% of the population) and Russians (about 0.6 million, or 13%) live. They are greatly inferior in number to the Gagauz (4%), Bulgarians (2%), and Jews (less than 2%). A significant part of Ukrainians and Russians are concentrated on the left bank of the Dniester, where the Transnistrian Moldavian Republic was created, the Gagauz live mainly in the Comrat, Ceadir-Lunga and Vulcanesti regions in the south of the country, where the Gagauz Republic is organized, the Bulgarians - also in the Ceadir-Lunga region, Jews - mainly in Chisinau (54% of the total in Moldova) and other cities.

In Transcaucasia There are three numerous peoples: Georgians (3.8 million, mainly in Georgia), Armenians (3.9 million, including in Armenia -3.1 million), Azerbaijanis (6.2 million, including in Azerbaijan -5 .8 million). Georgians belong to the Kartvelian family by language, Armenians belong to the Armenian group of the Indo-European family, Azerbaijanis belong to Turkic group Altai family. In each of the Transcaucasian states, in addition to the main people, there are also representatives of other Transcaucasian peoples, as well as Russians. According to the 1989 census, 0.4 million Armenians (8% of the country’s population) and 0.3 million Azerbaijanis (6%) lived in Georgia, slightly less than 0.1 million Azerbaijanis lived in Armenia, and -0.4 million in Azerbaijan. Armenians (6%) 8, including about 0.2 million in Baku. However, after a sharp deterioration in Armenian-Azerbaijani relations, almost all Azerbaijanis left Armenia; among the Armenians settled in Azerbaijan, those who lived mainly were those who lived in the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Region (the latter was transformed into the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, but Azerbaijan refused to recognize it). There were Russians in Azerbaijan, Georgia and Armenia, respectively, 0.4 million (6% of the population), 0.3 million (6%) and a little more than 50 thousand people (about 2%). In addition, in Georgia there were about 0.2 million Ossetians (3% of the population), 0.1 million Greeks (2%) and about 0.1 million Abkhazians (2%), in Azerbaijan - about 0.2 million Lezgins (2 %) 10, in Armenia - about 60 thousand Kurds (2%) p.

Russians They live in all Transcaucasian republics, mainly in cities. Thus, 75% of the entire Russian population of Azerbaijan is concentrated in Baku, 43% of all Russians in Armenia are concentrated in Yerevan, and 37% of all Russians in Georgia are concentrated in Tbilisi. However, in all these countries there are also Russians rural settlements. Thus, in Azerbaijan, Georgia and Armenia there are villages of Molokans, in Azerbaijan and Georgia - of Doukhobors, in Azerbaijan - of Subbotniks.

Abkhazians in Georgia concentrated in the overwhelming majority (97%) in the Republic of Abkhazia, which declared its sovereignty, Ossetians - in South Ossetia, which was declared a democratic republic, but not officially recognized (40% of all Georgian Ossetians), Gori, Karelian, Akhmeta and other regions , Armenians - in Akhalk-laki, Akhaltsikhe, Marneuli and other regions, Azerbaijanis - in Marneuli, Dmanisi, Bolnisi, Gardabani and other regions, Greeks - mainly in Tsalka region.

Lezgins They live in Azerbaijan in the north, along the border with Dagestan, in the Kuba and Kusar regions.

Kurds settled in Armenia, mainly in the Aparan, Talin and Etchmiadzin regions. Kurds also live in smaller numbers in Georgia (mainly in cities) and Azerbaijan (in Lachin and other regions). Among the Transcaucasian Kurds, two ethno-confessional groups stand out. Part of the Armenian Kurds, as well as Georgian Kurds, belong to the Yezidi sect, another part of the Armenian Kurds and Azerbaijani Kurds are Muslims (Armenian - Sunnis, Azerbaijani - Shiites).

middle Asia(recently the name “Central Asia” has become preferred) and Kazakhstan, undoubtedly represent a single historical and cultural area, the indigenous peoples of which have many common features in its material and spiritual culture. Most of the population of Central Asia and Kazakhstan belongs to Turkic group of the Altai family. These are Uzbeks (17 million in the entire region, including 14 million in Uzbekistan), Kazakhs (7 million, mainly in Kazakhstan), Turkmens (3 million, mainly in Turkmenistan), Kyrgyz (2 million, mainly in Kyrgyzstan) , Tatars (about 1 million in Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and other countries of the region), Karakalpaks (0.4 million, almost exclusively in Uzbekistan, mainly in the Republic of Karakalpakstan, which is part of Uzbekistan), Uighurs (about 0.3 million, primarily in Kazakhstan), Crimean Tatars (about 0.2 million in Uzbekistan), Azerbaijanis (about 0.2 million in Kazakhstan and other countries), Turks (about 0.2 million in Uzbekistan), Bashkirs (about 0.1 million in Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and other countries).

The second largest in the region is Slavic group of the Indo-European family, which includes Russians (about 10 million in Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and other countries), Ukrainians (over 1 million, mainly in Kazakhstan), Belarusians (0.2 million, mainly in Kazakhstan), Poles (Kazakhstan).

Followed by Iranian group of the Indo-European family, which primarily includes Tajiks (more than 4 million, mainly in Tajikistan and Uzbekistan). The Tajik Statistical Service includes among the Tajiks and representatives of the so-called Pamir peoples living in the Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region: Yazgulyams, Rushans, Khufs, Bartangs, Oroshors (Roshorvs), Shugnans, Badzhuvs, Ishkashims, Wakhans (the total number, according to a rough estimate, exceeds 90 thousand). In fact, these are special ethnic groups that speak Iranian languages ​​that are very different from Tajik (for example, all Pamir languages ​​are much closer to Pashtun than to Tajik). The Tajiks also include the indigenous inhabitants of the Yagnob Valley - the Yagnobis (about 4 thousand), who speak a special Iranian language. In a small number there are also Kurds (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan), Baluchis and Persians (Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan).

Numerous German group Indo-European family, represented by Germans (more than 1 million, mainly in Kazakhstan, but also in Kyrgyzstan and other countries).

The region has a significant number Koreans, which are classified by language to the Altai family(0.3 million, mainly in Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan).

Of the other peoples living in Central Asia and Kazakhstan, one should name Armenians(Uzbekistan and other countries), Chinese-speaking Dungans(Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan), as well as Tajik-speaking Central Asian (Bukhara) Jews

In Kazakhstan, in addition to the main people, there are numerous Russians (38% of the population). Quite a few Germans (6%), Ukrainians (5%), Uzbeks and Tatars (2% each) live there.

In Turkmenistan, among the national minorities, Russians (9% of the population), Uzbeks (9%), and Kazakhs (2%) should be noted.

In Uzbekistan, in addition to Uzbeks, there are quite a lot of Russians (8% of the population), Tajiks (5%) 15 , Kazakhs (4%), Tatars (2%), Karakalpaks (2%).

The population of Tajikistan has a large share of Uzbeks (24%) and Russians (8%).

Finally, in Kyrgyzstan, significant groups of the population are Russians (22%), Uzbeks (13%), Ukrainians (3%) and Germans (2%).

In some countries of the region, national minorities are densely settled and in some places make up the majority of the population. So, in Kazakhstan Russians form the absolute majority of the population in East Kazakhstan (66%), North Kazakhstan (62%) and Karaganda (52%) regions, as well as in the capital of the country - Almaty (59%), and a relative majority in Pavlodar (45%) , Akmola (45%), Kostanay (44%) and Kokchetav (40%) regions.

Thus, Russians prevail in numbers over the Kazakhs in 7 of the 16 regions of the country.

Germans settled less compactly, but in some relatively small areas they make up the majority of the population. The highest proportion of Germans is in Kokchetav (12%), Akmola (12%), Karaganda (11%), Pavlodar (10%), Kustanai (9%) regions.

Specific gravity Ukrainians high in the population of Kustanai (15%), Akmola (9%), Pavlodar (9%), Kokchetav (8%) and Karaganda (8%) regions. They have small areas where Ukrainians make up the majority.

Uzbeks are mainly concentrated in the South Kazakhstan region (86% of the total number in the country), forming compact areas in the area of ​​​​the cities of Chimkent and Kentau.

IN Turkmenistan 39% of all Russians live in Ashgabat. Uzbeks are concentrated mainly in Tashauz (69% of the total) and Chardzhou (27%) regions. Both of them have areas where the Uzbek population predominates. In the Tashauz region, Uzbeks make up 32% of the population.

IN Uzbekistan 42% of the total Russian population is concentrated in Tashkent, where Russians make up 34% of the population. Of the regions, Tashkent has the highest share of the Russian population (15%).

Tajiks compactly settled in a number of regions of Uzbekistan. Their share is highest in the population of Surkhandarya (13%), Samarkand (9%) and Namangan (9%) regions.

Kazakhs live on the territory of Uzbekistan, mainly within the Republic of Karakalpakstan (39% of all Kazakhs of Uzbekistan), where they are concentrated in the western and eastern parts (while the central part of the republic - the Amu Darya delta - is inhabited mainly by Karakalpaks), as well as in the Tashkent region ( 33% of the total), in which they form several compact habitats. In Karakalpakstan, Kazakhs make up 26% of the population, in the Tashkent region - 12%. Kazakhs predominate in the sparsely populated northern and central regions of the Bukhara region and in the northern regions of the Syr-Darysh region.

In Tajikistan, there are compact areas of the Uzbek population in all regions of the country, except for the Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region. The highest proportion of Uzbeks is in the Kurgan-Tube 16 and Leninabad regions (32 and 31% of the population, respectively). Half of all Russians in Tajikistan live in the capital, Dushanbe.

IN Kyrgyzstan The Russian population is mainly concentrated in the capital - Bishkek (38% of the total number of Russians) and in areas of republican subordination (also 38%), primarily in those located near Bishkek. The overwhelming majority of Uzbeks (95% of the total number) live in the Osh region, primarily in areas adjacent to Uzbekistan.

The ethno-demographic situation in the newly independent states of the near abroad is, to a certain extent, influenced by the activities carried out in them politics on the national question. It varies greatly in different states, and the range of these variations is very wide: from the recognition of complete equality of all national groups and the implementation of this equality in life to poorly hidden, and sometimes even legally enshrined, discrimination against national minorities.

Since in most neighboring countries the largest national minority are Russians (there are 25 million Russians), the nuances are most national policy neighboring countries concern them specifically.

The most anti-democratic, discriminatory policies towards other ethnic groups, and primarily Russians, are pursued by the governments of Latvia and Estonia. It is perhaps difficult to name a sphere of political, social and economic life in these two states where the rights of Russians would not be infringed in one way or another. This is the deprivation of the right to citizenship of the main part of the Russian population, strict requirements for persons undergoing naturalization, limited opportunities to use their native language, restrictions on property ownership, etc. It seems that the Russian population is being taken revenge for the crimes of the totalitarian regime, from which, as we know, Russians suffered no less than other nationalities. It is no coincidence that the issue of discrimination against the Russian population in the Baltic states has been repeatedly raised at a number of international forums.

Migration trends depend not only on the policy pursued on the national issue, but also on a number of other factors (quality of life in the country, the presence or absence of security guarantees, etc.). Therefore, it should not be surprising that the outflow of the Russian population from Central Asia, with a relatively favorable policy for Russians on the national issue in these countries, is significantly higher than from Baltic countries with their clearly discriminatory policies. Apparently, this is determined, on the one hand, relatively high level life in the Baltic states and, on the other hand, fear of a possible outbreak of Islamic fundamentalism in Central Asia.

Ethnic processes taking place in them play a certain role in changing the ethno-demographic situation in neighboring countries.

The two most important types of ethnic processes in neighboring countries are ethnic consolidation and ethnic assimilation.

Ethnic consolidation characteristic of almost all major ethnic groups of neighboring countries. Thus, in Estonia, the ethnographic group of Orthodox Estonians - the Seto - is becoming increasingly closer to the bulk of Estonians; in Latvia, a similar thing is observed with the Latgalians, a subethnic division of the Latvian people professing Catholicism; in Lithuania, the differences between the Aukštaitians, Samogitians and other groups of the Lithuanian people are gradually being erased.

In Belarus, their subethnic group, the Poleschuk, is increasingly merging with the main part of Belarusians; in Ukraine, the differences between eastern and western Ukrainians (and especially such groups of the latter as Lemkos, Boykos; Hutsuls) are being smoothed out (although they still remain quite noticeable).

In Moldova, during several decades of political isolation of the left-bank and right-bank Moldovans, some specific features appeared in their culture, but now they are little noticeable.

In Georgia, the process of leveling has been going on for many decades. cultural differences between different local groups of the Georgian people: Kakhetians, Kartlians, Meskhis, Java-Khams, Imeretians, Lechkhumis, Rachins, Gurians, Tushins, Pshavas. Consolidation processes of a similar nature are also observed among two other large peoples of Transcaucasia: Armenians (a rapprochement is taking place between eastern and western Armenians), and Azerbaijanis (sub-ethnic groups such as Ayrums, Padars, Shah-Sevens are gradually dissolving in the bulk of the Azerbaijani ethnic group).

There is internal unity of the main ethnic groups of Kazakhstan and the Central Asian republics. Thus, the differences between the Kazakhs of the Elder, Middle, Younger and Bukey Hordes are increasingly smoothed out. The Turkmen tribes (Tekes, Saryks, Salyrs, Ersaris, Yomuts, Goklen, Chowdors, etc.) also unite. Among the Uzbeks, previously separate subethnic groups such as the Kypchas, Turks, Kuramas, Lokais, etc. are becoming less prominent. Local groups of the Kyrgyz and Tajik peoples are uniting.

As for assimilation processes, then they are also quite widespread in neighboring countries, although not clearly expressed everywhere. We will focus only on those of them that are quite intensive.

The Ingrian Finns, who moved here in the second half of the 50s in order to enter a related ethnocultural environment, are gradually assimilating in Estonia (they are close to the Estonians in language and adhere to the same Lutheran confession). In Latvia, the process of assimilation of Finnish-speaking Livonians by Latvians is close to completion (according to the 1989 census, their There are only 135 people left in the country).

In Georgia, the Batsbis (the so-called Tsova-Tushins), who speak one of the Veinakh languages, have been largely assimilated by Georgians. In Georgian ethnological literature it is usually stated that the Georgian nation also included people with their own special languages Mingrelians and Svans. In Azerbaijan, the Ingiloy Georgians who converted to Islam have been assimilated to a certain extent by the Azerbaijanis.

In Central Asia the most striking examples processes of assimilation may be due to the absorption by the Turkmen of such ethnic groups as the Hazara-Berberies, the Jamshids, and partly the Baluchis (who, in turn, assimilated the group living with them - the Braguis), as well as the gradual dissolution among the Kirghiz of the recently clearly distinguished group of Mongolian origin - Sart-Kalmaks.

In a number of neighboring countries, there is also a process of assimilation by Russians of Ukrainians, Belarusians and representatives of some other peoples who have long since switched to the Russian language.

Much less frequently than ethnic unification processes are observed in neighboring countries. ethnically dividing. Of these, two processes of ethnic separation are most clearly expressed: the separation of the Yezidi Kurds living in Armenia and Georgia from the bulk of the Muslim Kurds and the separation from the Armenian people of the Islamized Hemshin Armenians, who previously lived in Adjara and then resettled to Kyrgyzstan.

Analyzing the ethno-demographic situation in neighboring countries as a whole, we can conclude that in most of them the combined result of demographic, migration and ethnic processes will apparently be some simplification of the ethnic structure of the population and an increase in the share of the main peoples in it.

End of work -

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Kazan 2009
Contents Introduction. 4 Course of lectures. 5 Topic 1. ETHNOGEOGRAPHY AS A SCIENCE.. 5 Topic 2. ETHNOS and CONCEPTS OF ETHNOSIS. ETHNIC PROCEEDS

The formation of ethnology and the birth of ethnogeography
The birth of ethnogeography as a science owes much to the emergence and development of two areas of human knowledge - ethnology and geography. Both of these sciences originated in Ancient Greece, and their formation was

Subject of ethnology and ethnogeography
Public consciousness has long tried to explain diversity ethnic composition population of the Earth. One such evidence is the biblical story of the construction of the Tower of Babel as high as heaven. B

Ethnogeography in the system of sciences
Having a cultural component and social structure, ethnic groups occupy a certain place in geographical space. This fact is decisive for classifying ethnogeography as a complex of geographies.

Methods of ethnogeographical research
In the last decades of the 20th century. ethnological research began to be better funded, which contributed to the intensification of field, theoretical and methodological research. One of the basics

The concept of ethnicity
Today, every inhabitant of the Earth is part of several communities: all of us, earthlings, represent a community of people - humanity; those living in Russia, citizens of one country, are Russians. However, we are all already born

ETHNICITY - a set of characteristic cultural features of an ethnic group; form of social organization of cultural differences
The term “ethnicity” came to Russian ethnology from Western ethnological science, where it is defined roughly as a set of characteristic cultural traits of an ethnic group. Ethnic groups

Modern concepts of ethnicity
From the middle of the 19th century. Various concepts, schools and directions appeared in ethnology. Some of them, thanks to a strict scientific approach, became the most influential and popular for a certain time.

Theory of ethnogenesis l.N. Gumilyov. Modern theories of ethnicity in Russia
Ethnography (ethnology) in Russia has developed as a scientific direction in mid-19th V. and its development was greatly influenced by evolutionism. Most widely known

Ethnic identification - identifying oneself as a member of a group of people of a certain nationality
Ethnic identity, like identity in general, is formed in the process of life in society, i.e. the process of transferring by an individual to himself the qualities and characteristics of his external environment, striving

Ethnic processes
Ethnicity – dynamic system. It is characterized not only by continuity and continuity of development, but also by changes over time - ethnic processes. Ethnic and racial composition of the population of countries, re

Races of humanity
For approximately one million years from the beginning of the Quaternary period, during its glacial and interglacial eras up to the post-glacial, modern era, ancient humanity increasingly

Racial characteristics
The characteristics on the basis of which races of different orders are distinguished are diverse. The most obvious are the degree of development of the tertiary hairline (the primary hairline already exists at that time).

Eye without epicanthus Eye with epicanthus
The causes of epicanthus have not yet been clearly determined. A number of authors have put forward the hypothesis that facial features of the Mongoloid type are a special adaptive feature for life in conditions

Formation of races
The time of formation of racial types is usually attributed to the era of the emergence of man modern look, neoanthrope, during which the biological stage of anthropogenesis was basically completed, which was expressed in

Placement of races in the world
Today, the geographical position of modern races has been quite clearly established. Negroids live in most of the African continent and in the New World, where they were taken as

National and linguistic composition of the world population
Kinship relations between languages ​​are built according to the scheme language family – language branch – group or subgroup of languages ​​– separate language. Language is a socio-historical phenomenon,

Origin of language
The question of the origin of language should not be confused with the question of the formation of actually existing or existing languages. These are two different questions. Anyone who actually exists or has existed

Endangered and dead languages
Just like other areas of life that are famous for the variety of their forms, for example, animal or vegetable world, linguistic diversity is in danger. And it is quite likely that in very few weeks

Indo-European family
1. Indian group (more than 96 living languages ​​in total) 1) Hindi and Urdu (sometimes united under the common name Hindustani) - two varieties of one New Indian language

Slavic group
A. Eastern subgroup 1) Russian; adverbs: Northern (Veliko)-Russian – “okayushchee” and South (Veliko)-Russian – “accharging”; Russian literary language has developed

B. Southern subgroup
4) Bulgarian - formed in the process of contact of Slavic dialects with the language of the Kama Bulgars, from which it received its name; writing based on the Cyrillic alphabet; ancient memories

B. Western subgroup
9) Czech; writing based on the Latin alphabet; the most ancient monuments from the 13th century. 10) Slovak; writing based on the Latin alphabet. 11) Polish; writing based on

A. North Germanic (Scandinavian) subgroup
1) Danish; writing based on the Latin alphabet; served literary language and for Norway up to late XIX V. 2) Swedish; writing based on the Latin alphabet (Sweden, Finland

B. West German subgroup
6) English; literary English developed in the 16th century. n. e. based on the London dialect; V–XI centuries – Old English (or Anglo-Saxon), XI–XVI centuries. - Middle English and from the 16th century. - But

B. East German subgroup
Dead: 11) Gothic, which existed in two dialects. Visigothic - served the medieval Gothic state in Spain and Northern Italy; had a writing system based on Gothic

Greek group
1) Modern Greek is the same as Greek, from the 12th century. Dead: 2) Ancient Greek, X century. BC e. – V century n. e.; Ionic-Attic dialects from the 7th–6th centuries. BC e.; Achaean (

Dagestan subgroup
1) Avar (Dagestan, North Azerbaijan, North Ossetia). 2) Darginsky (Dagestan). 3) Laksky (Dagestan). 4) Lezginsky (Dagestan, Azerbaijan). 5) Tabasaran (Yes

G. Volga branch
1) Mari (Mari, Cheremissky), dialects: mountainous on the right bank of the Volga and meadow on the left. 2) Mordovian: two independent languages: Erzya and Moksha. Note.

V. Amur group
1) Nanaisky (Goldsky) (Khabarovsk Territory, Primorsky Territory), with Ulchsky (Khabarovsk Territory). 2) Udeysky (Udege) (Khabarovsk Territory, Primorsky Territory) m. 4. INDIVIDUAL LANGUAGES

Semitic group
1) Arabic; international cult language of Islam; There are, in addition to classical Arabic, regional varieties (Sudanese, Egyptian, Syrian, etc.); Arabic alphabet writing

Egyptian group
Dead: 1) Ancient Egyptian - the language of ancient Egypt, known from hieroglyphic monuments and documents of demotic writing (from the end of the 4th millennium BC to the 5th century AD

Benue-Congo languages
The largest family in the Niger-Congo macrofamily, it covers the territory from Nigeria to the east coast of Africa, including South Africa. Divided into 4 branches and many groups, including

Nilo-Saharan family
(Central Africa, zone of geographical Sudan) 1) Songhai. 2) Saharan: kanuri, tuba, zaghawa. 3) F u r. 4) Mimi, mabang. 5) East Sudansk

A. Chinese group
1) Chinese is the first most spoken language in the world. Folk Chinese speech is divided into a number of dialect groups, which differ greatly, primarily phonetically; Chinese dialect defined

A. Language families of North America
1) Algonquin (Menominee, Delaware, Yurok, Mi’kmaq, Fox, Cree, Ojibwa, Potawatomi, Illinois, Cheyenne, Blackfoot, Arapaho, etc., as well as the extinct Massachusetts, Mohican, etc.

B. Language families of Central America
1) Yuto-Aztecan (Nahuatl, Shoshone, Hopi, Luiseño, Papago, Cora, etc.). This family is sometimes combined with the Kiowa-Tano languages ​​(Kiowa, Piro, Tiwa, etc.) within

B. Language families of South America
1) Tupi-Guarani (Tupi, Guarani, Yuruna, Tupari, etc.) (Center of South America). 2) Quechumara (Quechua is the language of the ancient Inca state in Peru, currently in Pe

Ethnic conflicts in the modern world
5.1. Ethnic conflicts are one of the global problems of our time. Factors in the development of ethnic conflicts Conflicts associated with the aggravation of interethnic relations

Geography of hotbeds of modern separatism
One of the most common types of territorial and ethnic conflicts can be called separatist conflicts. The term “separatism” comes from the Latin – “separated”.

National-state formations of the deported peoples of the USSR (1940-1990s)
People subjected to deportation Form of autonomy before deportation Year of deportation administrative units that included

Concept of Color Revolution
Color revolutions are most often called a series of mass street protests of the population that ended with a change political regime in several countries of Eastern Europe. It is generally accepted that in

Tulip revolution
In February - March 2005, the next parliamentary elections were held in Kyrgyzstan, which, at the instigation of a “foreign” NGO, were declared dishonest, which, at the instigation of the same NGOs,

European non-CIS countries
This is a territorial space of 4.9 million square meters. km and with a population of 514 million people was previously called Foreign Europe, and is now called the European Far Abroad. At this point

African countries
Africa, with an area of ​​30.3 million km2 and a population of over 700 million people, is now ahead of any other part of the world in terms of the number of independent states. However, I have not

Ethnic composition of the population of the Russian Federation (thousand people)
Total population 147021.9 145164.3 Russians 119865.9

Religions of the world
7.1. WHAT IS RELIGION? It is impossible to give an accurate and unambiguous definition of the concept of religion. There are many such definitions in science. They depend on the worldview

The problem of the emergence of religion
The question of how and when religion arose is a complex debatable and philosophical issue. There are two mutually exclusive answers to this. 1. Religion appeared along with man.

The role of religion in human life and society
Over the course of history, the situation with religion in the same country can change. Religions can unite people or divide them, inspire them to creative work, feats, call for inaction

Structure of religion
Religion is a very complex and multifaceted phenomenon. Let's try to highlight its main elements. 1. The initial element of any religion is faith. Faith is special

Geography of religions
Orthodoxy is widespread among the believers of most peoples of Russia and the CIS countries, which is represented by the Russian and Georgian Orthodox churches. Orthodox are p

Directories, encyclopedias, popular science publications
1. Material culture. - M., 1989. 2. Myths of the peoples of the world. Encyclopedia: In 2 volumes - M., 1998. - T. 1-2. 3. Peoples of the world: Historical and ethnographic reference book. - M., 1988. 4.

Glossary of terms
ABORIGENS are the indigenous inhabitants of a particular territory or country, living here “originally”; the same as “autochthons”. Australopithecus - fossil ape, near

Relations with neighboring countries have become

for the Russian leadership the most difficult and painful. Essentially, this is a continuous chain of problems and, accordingly, the search for their solutions.

The disappearance of the Soviet Union led to a reduction in the country's territory by a quarter. The European part of the Russian Federation has practically turned into an inland semi-isolated territory. Access to the Black and Baltic Seas was minimized; in the west and south, Russia found itself pushed back from Europe and Central Asia. As a result, Russia's economic ties with the outside world have become largely dependent on transit through neighboring countries (CIS). Thus, these countries got the opportunity to really influence the functioning of the main transport routes of Russia connecting it with the world.

The process of creating national armies began. New sources of tension arose and border disputes intensified.

Military units, with the exception of strategic nuclear forces, were reassigned to the state on whose territory they were located. A conflict immediately arose between Russia and Ukraine over the issue of the Black Sea Fleet. The then President of Ukraine L. Kravchuk transferred all armed formations stationed on its territory, including the fleet, under the jurisdiction of Ukraine. In turn, Russia declared that the Black Sea Fleet belongs to it. Soon the spontaneous division of the Black Sea Fleet began. During long and difficult negotiations, an agreement was signed on the division of the fleet in a 2:1 ratio.

The issue of dividing the nuclear weapons of the former Soviet Union turned out to be a pressing issue. Kazakhstan and Belarus immediately declared their status as non-nuclear countries, while Ukraine declared itself the owner of nuclear weapons located on its territory. Only after pressure from the US administration did it give up these claims in exchange for Russia’s commitment to supply enriched uranium for Ukrainian nuclear power plants.

The collapse of the USSR disrupted traditional economic ties with the former republics. Initially, when creating the CIS, it was planned to maintain a single economic

space, as well as maintaining the ruble as a single currency. However, the CIS countries were unable to agree on a unified economic policy. In the first half of the 90s. Trade turnover between the Russian Federation and the CIS countries has dropped noticeably. Therefore, the preservation of a single economic space was considered one of the main tasks in the activities of the Russian leadership. In September 1993, 9 CIS countries signed an agreement on a full-scale economic union, which provided for deepening integration and the creation of a free trade zone. However, it largely remained on paper.

The main political problem during this period was the situation of the Russian-speaking population in some CIS countries. As a result of the collapse of the USSR, more than 25 million Russians found themselves outside Russia, subjected to everyday nationalism and discrimination. The Baltic countries, in essence, openly set out to oust the Russians. Ethnic problems have become acute in Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Moldova and other countries.

In the Federal Law “On public policy of the Russian Federation in relation to compatriots abroad,” adopted on May 24, 1999, spells out specific forms and methods of supporting compatriots in “the area of ​​fundamental rights and freedoms of man and citizen” (Article 15), “in the economic and social fields” (Article 16), “in the field of culture, language and education” (Article 17), “support in the field of information” (Article 18), and Art. 22 directly “obliges” “state authorities of the Russian Federation” to “assist” compatriots in the implementation of legal rights and freedoms provided for by law. However, this is slow. Funds for assistance to migrants and refugees are not functioning, and the migrant accommodation program is poorly implemented. The unregulated legal field of “integration” within the CIS is beneficial to representatives of criminalized political elites, but does not in any way meet the national interests of the states of the post-Soviet space.

In 1994, the President of the Russian Federation B. Yeltsin, and then the Minister of Foreign Affairs A. Kozyrev, stated that the entire post-Soviet space is a sphere of vital interests of Russia and Russia will protect its interests within the former USSR by all legal means. In response, there was a negative reaction from Ukraine and Kazakhstan, which saw

This is Russia's transition to neo-imperial politics. A significant turn in Russia's foreign policy strategy was due to widespread in a society of national-state slogans, the desire to revive the sovereign power of Russia.

The main elements of the new foreign policy strategy of the Russian Federation were such as Russia’s military presence on the periphery of the post-Soviet space, the desire to form military-political union the CIS countries led by Russia, finally, a tough forceful position against states that opposed Russia's leadership. At the end of 1993, the Russian leadership decided not to withdraw its border troops from the former Soviet republics. As a result, in the post-Soviet space, only the Baltic countries and Ukraine remained outside the sphere of any influence of Russia.

Special attention Ukraine demanded. The confrontation between the two states intensified after Crimea declared itself a republic in 1994 and president-elect Crimea Yu. Meshkov called for its return to Russia. Ukraine did not recognize the results of the elections in Crimea, while Russia supported Crimean separatism. Russian-Ukrainian economic contradictions have also worsened.

Within the CIS, processes of economic disintegration gradually increased. In the Russian strategy of influence on the near abroad, economic cooperation turned out to be subordinated to military-political interests. By the second half of the 90s. It became obvious that the strategy of Russian dominance throughout the post-Soviet space had failed. It was not possible to conclude a military-political union of the CIS countries, to form a single political space and collective defense.

In the spring of 1997, at a meeting of the heads of state of the CIS in Moscow, a new strategy for equal partnership between Russia and the Commonwealth countries was announced. Russian President B. Yeltsin officially stated that Russia is against domination in any issues in the CIS space and is ready to withdraw its troops from the territory of these countries if they demand it. The Concept of Integration was proposed as a framework uniting all countries. economic development for a period of 5 years, implying the formation of a single economic space.

However, the possibility of real economic integration within the CIS is highly doubtful, since the economies of many of these states are moving in divergent directions. IN last years Russia has the closest relations with Belarus. In December 1999, an agreement was signed on the unification of the two countries. According to this agreement, both states retained their sovereignty, but interethnic bodies were created to which a number of powers were delegated.

Russia's near abroad countries were formed after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1992. There are 14 of them in total. These include those that were former Soviet socialist republics. Subsequently, they became Each of them is different spiritual, cultural, political directions. Economically, they are independent from Russia, but they are trading partners, along with European countries. It is worth noting that before the collapse of the USSR, such a term as “near abroad” did not exist.

Near Abroad: features of the concept

It is noteworthy that some neighboring countries have no borders with the Russian Federation. These include 6 post-Soviet Turkmenistan, Tajikistan and others). Moreover, there are countries in the world that geographically border Russia, but are not part of the “near abroad”, for example, Poland, China, Norway, Finland, etc. Based on what has been written above, it becomes clear that this is not the case geographical location states The main factor here is the political situation, because for about 70 years the neighboring countries were one.

List of countries

Baltic countries:

• Lithuania is the largest Baltic state in terms of area (65.3 thousand km 2). The capital is the city of Vilnius. By type of government - parliamentary - about 3 million people.
• Latvia is located in the northern part of Europe. It has common borders with the state - about 64.6 thousand km 2. The population is slightly less than 2 million people. The capital is the city of Riga.
• Estonia is the most small state among the Baltic countries (area - more than 45 thousand km 2). The capital is the city of Tallinn. It has borders with Russia, Latvia and Finland. The population is about 1.3 million people.

The continuation of the list will consist of the following states, a description of which can be read below in the article.

• Azerbaijan.
• Ukraine.
• Belarus.
• Kazakhstan.
• Georgia.
• Moldova is located in the south-eastern part of Europe. It has common borders with Romania and the state - almost 34 thousand km 2. About 3.5 million people live in this territory.
• Armenia is a country of Transcaucasia. The capital is Yerevan. Area - about 30 thousand km 2. For a long time it was in a military conflict with Azerbaijan. The population is about 3 million people.

Countries of the near abroad (list of former republics of Central and Central Asia):

• Uzbekistan borders on five countries: Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and Kazakhstan. It occupies a territory whose area is slightly less than 450 thousand km 2. The number of inhabitants is almost 32 million people.
• Turkmenistan is a country that has access to the Caspian Sea. The capital is the city of the state - about 490 thousand km 2, population more than 5 million people.
• Tajikistan is located in Central Asia. It occupies an area of ​​142 thousand km 2. More than 8.5 million people live here permanently. The capital is Dushanbe.
• Kyrgyzstan is a country located in Central Asia. It has borders with China, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan, Kazakhstan. The capital is the city of Bishkek. The population is about 6 million people, the area is slightly less than 200 thousand km 2.

Azerbaijan

Among the neighboring countries, it can be noted that the state is located in Eastern Transcaucasia and is washed by the waters of the Caspian Sea. Its territory is 86.6 thousand km 2, and its population is more than 9 million people. According to these two parameters, Azerbaijan is the largest Transcaucasian state. The capital is the city of Baku.

In recent years, this republic has significantly increased its economic level. This is especially noticeable when comparing other neighboring countries. The oil and gas industries are most developed here. Azerbaijan has not only a land border with the Russian Federation, but also a sea border. In 1996, in accordance with an agreement between these countries, the Baku-Novorossiysk route was established for transporting oil. And in 2006, a Russian Trade Representation was opened in the Azerbaijani capital.

Belarus

The list of “Near Abroad Countries of Russia” is supplemented by the Republic of Belarus. This state is located in Eastern Europe. The capital is Minsk. The territory is more than 200 thousand km 2, and the population is about 9.5 million inhabitants. It borders on the Russian Federation on the eastern side. Most of all, in terms of economic indicators, Belarus is well known in mechanical engineering and agriculture. And the most important foreign trade partner is Russia. Moreover, these two countries have strong military, political and economic relations. There is an Embassy of Belarus not only in Moscow, but also in other Russian cities.

Georgia

The Russian Federation also has diplomatic relations with such a neighboring country as Georgia. This state is located in Western Transcaucasia and is washed by the waters of the Black Sea. From the eastern and northern parts it borders with Russia. The territory is about 70 thousand km 2, and the population is more than 3.7 million people. The capital is the city of Tbilisi. The food, light and metallurgical industries are most developed here. After the collapse of the Union in 1992, Russia and Georgia signed the Sochi Treaty.

Kazakhstan

The Republic of Kazakhstan is also on the list of “Near Abroad Countries”. It has close relations with the Russian Federation. Its population is more than 17.7 million inhabitants, and its territory is 2.7 million km 2. The capital is Astana. In second place after Russia in economic indicators among all post-Soviet countries. It shares land and sea borders with the Federation along the Caspian Sea. Similar to the countries listed above, in 1992 an agreement on diplomatic relations between the countries was signed.

Ukraine

Of all the neighboring countries, Ukraine is closest to Russia. These two states have common borders. The capital of Ukraine is Kyiv. The territory is more than 600 thousand km 2, and the population is 42.5 thousand inhabitants. This country is industrial-agrarian. Heavy industry, metalworking and mechanical engineering are widely developed. Since 2014, military operations have been taking place in the eastern part of the state, which led not only to a decrease in the population, but also in the level of the economy.

That's all the neighboring countries. The full list of countries with a brief description is given above.