dship Society
other: ecology groups; human rights groups; nationalist pragmatists
(no foreign influence over Central Eurasia); neo-Eurasianists
(against Western influence for the area); religious groups;
westernizers (lean towards the West)

International organization participation:

APEC, Arctic Council, ARF, ASEAN (dialogue partner), BIS, BSEC,
CBSS, CE, CERN (observer), CIS, CSTO, EAEC, EAPC, EBRD, G-8, GCTU,
IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, IHO,
ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), IPU, ISO, ITSO,
ITU, ITUC, LAIA (observer), MIGA, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM (guest), NSG,
OAS (observer), OIC (observer), OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, PFP,
SCO, UN, UN Security Council, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR,
UNMIL, UNMIS, UNOCI, UNOMIG, UNTSO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO,
WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer), ZC

Diplomatic representation in the US:

chief of mission: Ambassador Yuriy Viktorovich USHAKOV
chancery: 2650 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20007
telephone: [1] (202) 298-5700, 5701, 5704, 5708
FAX: [1] (202) 298-5735
consulate(s) general: Houston, New York, San Francisco, Seattle

Diplomatic representation from the US:

chief of mission: Ambassador John R. BEYRLE
embassy: Bolshoy Deviatinskiy Pereulok No. 8, 121099 Moscow
mailing address: PSC-77, APO AE 09721
telephone: [7] (495) 728-5000
FAX: [7] (495) 728-5090
consulate(s) general: Saint Petersburg, Vladivostok, Yekaterinburg

Flag description:

three equal horizontal bands of white (top), blue, and red

Economy
Russia

Economy - overview:

Russia ended 2007 with its ninth straight year of growth, averaging
7% annually since the financial crisis of 1998. Although high oil
prices and a relatively cheap ruble initially drove this growth,
since 2003 consumer demand and, more recently, investment have
played a significant role. Over the last six years, fixed capital
investments have averaged real gains greater than 10% per year and
personal incomes have achieved real gains more than 12% per year.
During this time, poverty has declined steadily and the middle class
has continued to expand. Russia has also improved its international
financial position since the 1998 financial crisis. The federal
budget has run surpluses since 2001 and ended 2007 with a surplus of
about 3% of GDP. Over the past several years, Russia has used its
stabilization fund based on oil taxes to prepay all Soviet-era
sovereign de