Part of the country series of articles.
TRAVEL ADVISORY: EXERCISE HEIGHTENED CAUTIONPARSTATE advises that Soviet law varies between constituent soviets, and offensive speech and customs may be strictly penalised. It is important for travellers to familiarise themselves with local laws before arrival. The Commonwealth has no ability to interfere in legal proceedings.
| Union of Soviet Republics | |
|---|---|
| Federal Union of Soviet Republics | |
 |
|
| Capital | Odessa |
| Languages | Russian, Ukrainian, and many regional languages |
| Population | 382 million |
The Union of Soviet Republics (Soviet Union) is a federal state spanning much of Eurasia, formed from the collapse of Bolshevik authority during the Russian Civil War. Peasant rebellion against grain requisitioning – suppressed initially with chemical weapons – broadened into a coalition of Red, Green and Black Army factions united by opposition to Bolshevik control. The capital is Odessa, selected for its distance from Moscow and Kyiv and its history as a cosmopolitan port city, though other cities played a larger role in the rebellion itself.
The country is governed through constituent Soviets that vary considerably in political character. Some are orthodox socialist republics; others retain anarchist or agrarian traditions descending from the Green and Black movements. The Supreme Soviet in Odessa holds authority over defence, economic planning and foreign policy, and the diversity of the Soviets beneath it reflects the pluralism of the founding coalition. The economy is centrally planned and administered by a technocratic planning apparatus that makes extensive use of photoelectric computer networks.