The West of Russia is often called the whole of its European part, located west of the Ural Mountains and located mainly on the East European Plain. This plain occupies more than a third of the area of all of Europe.
West of Russia
Different regions of Russia differ from each other in economic and geographical position in the most radical way. If we proceed from the point of view that the west of Russia and its European part are identical, then it turns out that the South, Caucasus, Ural, Volga, North-West and Central Federal Districts are also the western part of the country.
However, historically it is customary to attribute to the west of Russia those regions that are located in close proximity to the state border with European countries.
Traditionally, the border regions of Russia are the Murmansk region, the Republic of Karelia, the Leningrad, Pskov, Smolensk, Bryansk, Kursk regions and the Krasnodar Territory, which belongs to the Southern Federal District.
Northwest Russia
Acquaintance with the western part of the country should begin with the North-Western region, which includes the Arkhangelsk, Vologda, Murmansk, Leningrad, Kaliningrad, Novgorod Pskov regions, as well as St. Petersburg, which is a constitutionally federal city, the Republic of Karelia, the Komi Republic and the Nenets autonomous region, which refers to the Arkhangelsk region.
The features of the North-West of Russia include a temperate and subarctic climate, because this region is located 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 a long-standing transport corridor connecting many European countries.
The economic and geographical position of the regions of the North-West is characterized by long-standing and fairly strong ties with the countries of Northern Europe, such as Norway, Finland and Sweden, although Russia does not have a land border with this state.
Best of all, the depth of ties is illustrated by the fact that every year the Finnish consulate in St. Petersburg issues several hundred thousand tourist visas to residents of the North-West of Russia. Most often, Petersburgers go to Finland for short one-day tours in order to visit shops, museums or performances by Western musicians.
Climate and nature
A description of the North-West of Russia is impossible without mentioning the unique natural resources that this region of the country possesses. For example, more than half of the forest reserves of the European part of Russia are located in the northwest: in the Vologda, Novgorod and Leningrad regions, as well as 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 that can survive a short northern summer.
In addition, there are full-flowing rivers in the region, such as the Northern Dvina and Pechora. Of great importance for the economy of the region is the Neva, flowing out of Lake Ladoga and flowing into the Gulf of Finland.
