WOTW 2022/Soviet Union

The Soviet Union, officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), is a transcontinental country that spans much of Eurasia. It is a federation of 16 constituent republics, the largest, most populous and most dominant of which is the Russian SFSR. The Soviet Union shares land borders with 14 countries, spans 11 time zones and is the largest country in the world. The capital and largest city is Moscow. It is considered a superpower and is in a Cold War with China, internationally regarded as the other superpower.

The Union was founded in 1922 as a federation of Soviet Russia, Ukraine, Byelorussia and Transcaucasia. After its leader Vladimir Lenin passed away in 1924, Communist Party General Secretary Joseph Stalin emerged as leader and led through a cult of personality. His reign saw the transformation of the union into an industrialised world power and leader of the international communist movement. Following a series of purges, the union entered World War II on the Allied side after the German invasion and emerged as a world superpower after the end of the war. The modern borders of the USSR were established post-war. The post-war years saw the rise of global communism and the Soviet Union aided numerous revolutionary groups across the globe. After the death of Stalin, Nikita Khrushchev led the union into the Cold War against China as [ideological differences between the two socialist superpowers grew into an international conflict of geopolitical tension that has lasted to the present.

The Soviet Union, though a federation, is centralised with power in the hands of sole legal and ruling vanguard Communist Party. The party, and therefore the union, is led by an idea of collective leadership with the First Secretary of the CPSU acting as either the leader or first among equals. The party ideology is based on socialism, communism and Marxism-Leninism and is organised on the ideas of democratic centralism. The party takes part in and leads the International Communist League, claiming to be the vanguard of world communism in opposition to the Communist Party of China whom also claims to be the vanguard.