49 Facts About Soviet Union

1.

Soviet Union, officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991.

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2.

Soviet Union produced many significant social and technological achievements and innovations.

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3.

Since the start of the Great Patriotic War at the latest, abbreviating the Russian name of the Soviet Union as has been complete taboo, the reason being that as a Russian Cyrillic abbreviation is instead associated with the infamous of Nazi Germany, just as SS is in English.

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4.

Soviet Union covered an area of over 22, 402, 200 square kilometres, and was the world's largest country, a status that is retained by its successor state, Russia.

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5.

Soviet Union Russia had to resolve similar conflicts with the newly established republics of Estonia, Finland, Latvia, and Lithuania.

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6.

One of the most prominent breakthroughs was the GOELRO plan, which envisioned a major restructuring of the Soviet Union economy based on total electrification of the country.

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7.

From its creation, the government in the Soviet Union was based on the one-party rule of the Communist Party.

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8.

Almost a year after Britain and France had concluded the Munich Agreement with Germany, the Soviet Union made agreements with Germany as well, both militarily and economically during extensive talks.

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9.

On 14 December 1939 the Soviet Union was expelled from the League of Nations for invading Finland.

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10.

In late 1979, the Soviet Union's military intervened in the ongoing civil war in neighboring Afghanistan, effectively ending a detente with the West.

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11.

Soviet Union made significant changes in the economy and party leadership, called perestroika.

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12.

On 8 December 1991, the presidents of Russia, Ukraine and Belarus, signed the Belavezha Accords, which declared the Soviet Union dissolved and established the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) in its place.

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13.

Soviet Union turned the powers that had been vested in the presidency over to Yeltsin.

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14.

That night, the Soviet Union flag was lowered for the last time, and the Russian tricolor was raised in its place.

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15.

Dissolution was followed by a severe drop in economic and social conditions in post-Soviet Union states, including a rapid increase in poverty, crime, corruption, unemployment, homelessness, rates of disease, infant mortality and domestic violence, as well as demographic losses, income inequality and the rise of an oligarchical class, along with decreases in calorie intake, life expectancy, adult literacy, and income.

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16.

In summing up the international ramifications of these events, Vladislav Zubok stated: "The collapse of the Soviet Union empire was an event of epochal geopolitical, military, ideological, and economic significance.

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17.

Soviet Union treaties laid groundwork for Ukraine's future foreign agreements as well as they led to Ukraine agreeing to undertake 16.

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18.

Marxist-Leninist leadership of the Soviet Union intensely debated foreign policy issues and changed directions several times.

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19.

Supreme Soviet Union was nominally the highest state body for most of the Soviet Union history, at first acting as a rubber stamp institution, approving and implementing all decisions made by the party.

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20.

The Supreme Soviet Union elected a Presidium to wield its power between plenary sessions, ordinarily held twice a year, and appointed the Supreme Court, the Procurator General and the Council of Ministers (known before 1946 as the Council of People's Commissars), headed by the Chairman (Premier) and managing an enormous bureaucracy responsible for the administration of the economy and society.

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21.

The Congress now elected the Supreme Soviet Union, which became a full-time parliament, and much stronger than before.

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22.

In 1990, Gorbachev introduced and assumed the position of the President of the Soviet Union, concentrated power in his executive office, independent of the party, and subordinated the government, now renamed the Cabinet of Ministers of the USSR, to himself.

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23.

The coup failed, and the State Council of the Soviet Union became the highest organ of state power "in the period of transition".

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24.

The Soviet Union used the inquisitorial system of Roman law, where the judge, procurator, and defence attorney collaborate to establish the truth.

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25.

Soviet Union'storian Matthew White wrote that it was an open secret that the country's federal structure was "window dressing" for Russian dominance.

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26.

Until the early 1960s, the Soviet Union navy was a rather small military branch, but after the Caribbean crisis, under the leadership of Sergei Gorshkov, it expanded significantly.

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27.

The Soviet Union participated in the war in Afghanistan between 1979 and 1989.

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28.

Soviet Union adopted a command economy, whereby production and distribution of goods were centralized and directed by the government.

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29.

For most of the period after World War II until its collapse, Soviet Union GDP was the second-largest in the world, and third during the second half of the 1980s, although on a per-capita basis, it was behind that of First World countries.

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30.

Soviet Union's theory did not come to fruition because of the USSR's collapse.

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31.

Soviet Union placed great emphasis on science and technology within its economy, however, the most remarkable Soviet successes in technology, such as producing the world's first space satellite, typically were the responsibility of the military.

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32.

Soviet Union authorities proved their commitment to Lenin's belief by developing massive networks, research and development organizations.

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33.

Under the Reagan administration, Project Socrates determined that the Soviet Union addressed the acquisition of science and technology in a manner that was radically different from what the US was using.

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34.

Soviet Union authorities were unable to meet the growing demand for transport infrastructure and services.

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35.

Soviet Union Europe moved towards sub-replacement fertility, while Soviet Union Central Asia continued to exhibit population growth well above replacement-level fertility.

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36.

The epidemic of divorces and extramarital affairs created social hardships when Soviet Union leaders wanted people to concentrate their efforts on growing the economy.

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37.

Soviet Union was an ethnically diverse country, with more than 100 distinct ethnic groups.

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38.

Article 42 of the 1977 Soviet Union Constitution gave all citizens the right to health protection and free access to any health institutions in the USSR.

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39.

Minister of Health Yevgeniy Chazov, during the 19th Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, while highlighting such successes as having the most doctors and hospitals in the world, recognized the system's areas for improvement and felt that billions of rubles were squandered.

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40.

The immediate period following the establishment of the Soviet Union state included a struggle against the Orthodox Church, which the revolutionaries considered an ally of the former ruling classes.

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41.

In practice, the Soviet Union system subscribed to a narrow interpretation of this right, and in fact used a range of official measures to discourage religion and curb the activities of religious groups.

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42.

Soviet Union was officially a secular state, but a "government-sponsored program of forced conversion to atheism" was conducted under the doctrine of state atheism.

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43.

The opinions on the USSR are complex and have changed over time, with different generations having different views on the matter as well as on Soviet Union policies corresponding to separate time periods during its history.

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44.

In some post Soviet Union republics, there is a more negative view of the USSR, although there is no unanimity on the matter.

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45.

Culture of the Soviet Union passed through several stages during the USSR's existence.

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46.

The Soviet Union was the biggest rival to the United States at the Summer Olympics, winning six of its nine appearances at the games and topping the medal tally at the Winter Olympics six times.

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47.

The Soviet Union entered teams of athletes who were all nominally students, soldiers, or working in a profession – in reality, the state paid many of these competitors to train on a full-time basis.

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48.

Soviet Union media has always focused on the vast expanse of land and the virtually indestructible natural resources.

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49.

The Soviet Union authorities had an almost unwavering belief that man could transcend nature.

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