Russia

Russia's human rights management has been increasingly criticised by leading democracy and human rights watchdogs. In particular, organisations such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch consider Russia to have not enough democratic attributes and to allow few political rights and civil liberties to its citizens.[268][269]

Since 2004, Freedom House has ranked Russia as "not free" in its Freedom in the World survey.[270] Since 2011, the Economist Intelligence Unit has ranked Russia as an "authoritarian regime" in its Democracy Index, ranking it 124th out of 167 countries for 2021.[271] In regards to media freedom, Russia was ranked 150th out of 180 countries in Reporters Without Borders' Press Freedom Index for 2021.[272] The Russian government has been widely criticised by political dissidents and human rights activists for unfair elections,[273] crackdowns on opposition political parties and protests,[274][275] persecution of non-governmental organisations and independent journalists,[276][277] and censorship of media and internet.[278]

Russia has been described as a kleptocracy.[279] It was the lowest rated European country in Transparency International's Corruption Perceptions Index for 2021, ranking 136th out of 180 countries.[280] The phenomenon of corruption in Russia has been strongly established in the historical model of public governance, and is perceived as a significant problem.[281] It impacts various aspects of life, including the economy,[282] business,[283] public administration,[284] law enforcement,[285] healthcare,[286][287] and education.[288]

Russia has a mixed economy,[291] with enormous natural resources, particularly oil and natural gas.[292] It has the world's eleventh-largest economy by nominal GDP and the sixth-largest by PPP.[293][294] In 2017, the large service sector contributed to 62% of the total GDP, the industrial sector 32%, and the small agricultural sector roughly 5%.[6][needs update] Russia has a low unemployment rate of 4.1%.[295] Russia's foreign exchange reserves are the world's fifth-largest.[296] It has a labour force of roughly 70 million, which is the world's sixth-largest.[297] Russia's large automotive industry ranks as the world's tenth-largest by production.[298]

Russia is the world's twentieth-largest exporter and importer.[299][300] The oil and gas sector accounted up to roughly 40% of Russia's federal budget revenues, and up to 60% of its exports in 2019.[301] In 2019, the Natural Resources and Environment Ministry estimated the value of natural resources to 60% of the country's GDP.[302] Russia has one of the lowest external debts among major economies,[303] although its inequality of household income and wealth is one of the highest among developed countries.[304]

Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the country has faced international sanctions and corporate boycotts,[305] in a move described as an "all-out economic and financial war" to isolate the Russian economy from the global financial system.[182] The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development has estimated the damage done by the sanctions triggered "the greatest supply shock since at least the early 1970s", and will retract Russia's economy by 10% in 2022.[183] Some estimates have suggested the sanctions will cost the Russian economy 30 years of development, and reduce the country's living standards for the next 5 years.[184]

Transport and energy

Railway transport in Russia is mostly under the control of the state-run Russian Railways. The total length of common-used railway tracks is the world's third-longest, and exceeds 87,000 km (54,100 mi).[307] As of 2016[update], Russia has the world's fifth-largest road network, with some 1,452 thousand km of roads,[308] while its road density is among the world's lowest.[309] Russia's inland waterways are the world's second-longest, and total 102,000 km (63,380 mi).[310] Its pipelines total some 251,800 km (156,461 mi), and are the world's third-longest.[311] Among Russia's 1,218 airports,[312] the busiest is Sheremetyevo International Airport in Moscow. Russia's largest port is the Port of Novorossiysk in Krasnodar Krai along the Black Sea.[313]

Russia has been widely described as an energy superpower.[314] It has the world's largest proven gas reserves,[315] the second-largest coal reserves,[316] the eighth-largest oil reserves,[317] and the largest oil shale reserves in Europe.[318] Russia is also the world's leading natural gas exporter,[319] the second-largest natural gas producer,[320] and the second-largest oil producer and exporter.[321][322]

Russia is committed to the Paris Agreement, after joining the pact formally in 2019.[323] It is the world's fourth-largest greenhouse gas emitter.[324] Russia is the world's fourth-largest electricity producer,[325] and the ninth-largest renewable energy producer in 2019.[326] It was also the world's first country to develop civilian nuclear power, and to construct the world's first nuclear power plant.[327] Russia was also the world's fourth-largest nuclear energy producer in 2019,[328] and was the fifth-largest hydroelectric producer in 2021.[329]

Agriculture and fishery

Russia's agriculture sector contributes about 5% of the country's total GDP, although the sector employs about one-eighth of the total labour force.[330] It has the world's third-largest cultivated area, at 1,265,267 square kilometres (488,522 sq mi). However, due to the harshness of its environment, about 13.1% of its land is agricultural,[6] and only 7.4% of its land is arable.[331] The main product of Russian farming has always been grain, which occupies considerably more than half of the cropland.[330] Russia is[when?] the world's largest exporter of wheat.[332] Various analysts of climate change adaptation foresee large opportunities for Russian agriculture during the rest of the 21st century as arability increases in Siberia, which would lead to both internal and external migration to the region.[333]

More than one-third of the sown area is devoted to fodder crops, and the remaining farmland is devoted to industrial crops, vegetables, and fruits.[330] Owing to its large coastline along three oceans and twelve marginal seas, Russia maintains the world's sixth-largest fishing industry; capturing nearly 5 million tons of fish in 2018.[334] It is home to the world's finest caviar, the beluga; and produces about one-third of all canned fish, and some one-fourth of the world's total fresh and frozen fish.[330]

Science and technology