The West of Russia often refers to its entire Europeanpart west of the Ural Mountains and located mainly on the East European Plain. This plain occupies more than a third of the whole of Europe.
Different regions of Russia differ from each otherin the economic and geographical situation in the most radical way. If we proceed from the point of view that the west of Russia and its European part are identical, it will come out that the Southern, Caucasian, Ural, Volga, North-West and Central federal districts are also a western part of the country.
However, historically, to the west of Russia, it is customary to refer to those regions that are located in close proximity to the state border with European countries.
Traditionally border regions of RussiaThe Murmansk region, the Republic of Karelia, the Leningrad, Pskov, Smolensk, Bryansk, Kursk regions and the Krasnodar Territory are considered to belong to the Southern Federal District.
Acquaintance with the western part of the country is worthstarting from the North-West region, which includes the Arkhangelsk, Vologda, Murmansk, Leningrad, Kaliningrad, Novgorod Pskov regions, as well as St. Petersburg, which is by federal constitution a city of federal significance, the Republic of Karelia, the Komi Republic and the Nenets Autonomous District. Arkhangelsk region.
The peculiarities of the North-West of Russia includemoderate and subarctic climate, because this region is in the extreme north of Europe, which has access to the Arctic Ocean. In addition, several regions of Russia have access to the Baltic Sea, which is an old transport corridor linking many countries of Europe.
Economic and geographical position of regionsThe North-West is characterized by long-standing and fairly strong ties with the Nordic countries, such as Norway, Finland and Sweden, although Russia does not have a land border with this state.
Best of all, the depth of the connections is illustrated by the fact,that annually the Finnish consulate in St. Petersburg issues several hundred thousand tourist visas to residents of the North-West of Russia. Most often St. Petersburg go to Finland for short one-day tours to visit shops, museums or performances of Western musicians.
Description of the North-West of Russia is impossible withoutmention of the unique natural resources that this region of the country has. For example, more than half of the forest resources in the European part of Russia are in the northwest: in the Vologda, Novgorod and Leningrad regions, and in the Republic of Karelia.
The landscape of the region is mostly flat,covered with forest, taiga, tundra. In the north, in the Murmansk region, a characteristic feature of the landscape are hills - gentle low hills, covered with low grasses, able to survive a short northern summer.
In addition, there are also large rivers in the region, such as the Northern Dvina and Pechora. The Neva, which flows from the Ladoga Lake and flows into the Gulf of Finland, is of great importance for the economy of the district.
In the north-west of Russia there are severallarge cities, which are of great importance for the economy not only of the region, but of the whole country. First and foremost, St. Petersburg, whose economic and geographical position makes it a dynamically developing transport and industrial center of Russia, should be mentioned.
Another major city in the north-west is theMurmansk is the only sea port in the north, the waters of which do not freeze. Founded in 1917, Murmansk has transformed over a hundred years of its existence into the largest city, located beyond the Arctic Circle and in one of Russia's strategically important ports. Through it, coal is delivered to Europe, and many fishing vessels are sailing from Murmansk.
