A former imperial power and then a union of communist countries, the Russian Federation is a northern Asian nation that straddles the Arctic Ocean. With its capital in Moscow, the nation is a confederation of 49 oblasts, 21 republics, 10 autonomous okrugs, 6 krays, 2 federal cities and 1 autonomous oblast. Its people are a diverse mix with ethnic Russians, Tatars, Ukrainians, Chuvash, Bashkir, Belarusian, Moldavian and others. Most are either Orthodox Christians or Muslim. The official language is Russian but English is spoken by many professionals and educators.
The Russian Federation is led by the popularly elected President. He heads the Presidential Administration which is a body of advisors, Presidential staff, secretaries and clerks. The Presidential Administration is a body without authority. The Head of Government is the Prime Minister and his several Deputy Prime Ministers. The many Prime Ministers in cooperation of department ministers comprise the Cabinet Government which oversees the administration of the entire nation. There is no Vice President. If the President is unable to carry out his duties, the Prime Minister assumes the role.
Legislation is the jurisdiction of the bicameral Federalnoye Sobraniye (Federal Assembly). It is comprised of the Sovet Federatsy (Federation Council) and the Gosudarstvennaya Duma (State Duma).
