The majority of individuals are Russian, Slavic individuals related towards the Ukrainians, Bylorussians, Poles and Czechs. Prior to Communism, most were members from the Eastern Orthodox Church, which is now experiencing a revival. The pressures that suppressed religion also supported the adoption from the Russian language throughout the country, and also the language is nonetheless [...]

Russia has huge mineral deposits, which have not yet been fully exploited. Coal, iron, natural gas and oil are all produced, but the techniques of production under Communist rule have led to many environmental problems. The crystal clear waters of Lake Baikal, for instance, are threatened by industrial pollution from the nearby city of Irkutsk.
Industrial [...]

Winston Churchill described Russia as a riddle wrapped inside a mystery inside an enigma. It’s a challenging place to get to know, partly because of its huge size, but also due to the enormous diversity of cultures it brings together.
The Russian Federation will be the world’s largest nation, stretching from the coast of the Baltic [...]

Actually, the Great Leap Forward was much more a Great Lurch Backward. In the rush to boost production, agriculture was seriously disrupted as farmers had been diverted into futile backyard steel production or half-baked engineering schemes. The man-made chaos was compounded by three years of disastrous weather. Up to 20 million people died in the [...]

In 1953, when the CPR launched its very first Five Year Plan for improving agricultural and industrial output, some 10,000 Soviet scientists and technicians were sent to assist. But Mao was already having second thoughts about land reform. It had not achieved the hoped-for improve in production, and he feared that new class divisions would [...]

No Chinese emperor enjoyed more well-known adulation than Mao Zedong – and no group was much more devoted to him than the millions of youngsters known as the Red Guards. But their zeal tore the country apart and brought it to the brink of civil war.
In October 1949, Mao Zedong proclaimed the Chinese People’s Republic [...]

The people of Lithuania are predominantly Lithuanian – the following largest group is the Russian population, most of who arrived following World War II as part of the Soviet industrialization programme. Next in terms of population size are the Poles, numerous living in the south-west from the country. There are also little communities of Ukrainians, [...]

Occupied by various powers for most of its history, Lithuania is now embarking on its third period of independence. Modern Lithuanians see its strong instinct for survival against the odds as a good omen for the future.
Lithuania may be the largest and most southerly from the three Baltic States. It borders Latvia within the north, [...]

There had been angry demands for a US withdrawal, not least in America itself. Since the casualties mounted – over 50,000 Americans were to become killed – a tide of anti-war protest swept the country. The US president, Lyndon B Johnson, was so concerned at the political damage the war was causing that in March [...]

Convinced that the collapse of South Vietnam would result in the whole of South-East Asia being overrun by the Communists, America became deeply involved in the struggle. Its troops joined in the fighting, and its aircraft bombed suspected Vietcong bases and supply lines. South Vietnam was also helped by military units from South Korea, Australia, [...]