Countries of the near abroad of Russia: list and brief description

The countries of the near abroad of Russia were formed after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1992. There are 14 of them. These include those that were former Soviet socialist republics. Later they became independent states. Each of them is distinguished by spiritual, cultural, political directions. Economically, they are independent of Russia, but they are trading partners, on a par with European countries. It is worth noting that before the collapse of the Soviet Union such a term as "near abroad" did not exist.

Near Abroad: features of the concept

It is noteworthy that some countries of the near abroad do not have any borders with the Russian Federation. These include the six post-Soviet republics (Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan and others). Moreover, in the world there are countries that border on Russia territorially, but are not part of the "near abroad", for example, Poland, China, Norway, Finland, etc. Based on the above, it becomes clear that the matter is not in the geographical position of states . Here the main factor is the political situation, because about 70 years were one whole country of the near abroad.

List of countries

Baltic countries:

• Lithuania - by area the largest state of the Baltic (65.3 thousand sq. Km.). The capital is Vilnius. The type of government is a parliamentary republic. The population is about 3 million people.
• Latvia is located in the northern part of Europe. It shares borders with Lithuania. The area of the state is about 64.6 thousand km ² . The population is just under 2 million people. The capital is Riga.
• Estonia - the smallest state among the Baltic countries (area - more than 45 thousand km ² ). The capital city is 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 later in the article.

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

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

• Uzbekistan borders on five states: with Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and Kazakhstan. It occupies an area that is slightly smaller than 450,000 km ² . The number of residents is almost 32 million people.
• Turkmenistan is a country that has access to the Caspian Sea. The capital is the city of Ashgabat. The area of the state is about 490 thousand km ² , the population is more than 5 million people.
• Tajikistan is located in Central Asia. Occupies a territory 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 Bishkek. The population is about 6 million people, the area is slightly less than 200 thousand km ² .

Azerbaijan

Among the CIS countries, the Republic of Azerbaijan can be noted. The state is located in the Eastern Transcaucasus and is washed by the waters of the Caspian Sea. Its territory is 86,6 thousand km ² , and the population - 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 the economic level. This is especially noticeable if we compare other countries of the near abroad. Here the oil and gas industries are most developed. With the Russian Federation, Azerbaijan has not only a land border, but also a sea border. In 1996, in accordance with the agreement between these countries, the Baku-Novorossiysk route for oil transportation was conducted. And in 2006 the Trade Representative Office of Russia was opened in the Azerbaijani capital.

Belarus

The list of "Countries of the near abroad 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 - about 9.5 million inhabitants. The Russian Federation borders on the eastern side. Most of all, on economic indicators, Belarus is well known in engineering and agriculture. And the most important foreign trade partner is Russia. In addition, these two countries have strong military, political and economic relations. The Embassy of Belarus is not only in Moscow, but also in other Russian cities.

Georgia

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

Kazakhstan

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

Ukraine

Of all the neighboring countries, Ukraine is the closest to Russia. These two states have common borders. The capital of Ukraine is Kiev. The territory is more than 600 thousand km ² , and the population - 42,5 thousand inhabitants. This country is an industrial-agrarian one. Widely developed heavy industry, metalworking and engineering. Since 2014, military actions have taken place in the eastern part of the country, which led not only to a decrease in the number of people, but also to the level of the economy.

That's all the countries of the near abroad. List of countries in full with a brief description is indicated above.