located_on_terrain_feature crimean oblast
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics ( USSR " ) was a socialist state in ___MASK31___ that existed from 1922 to 1991 . A union of multiple subnational republics , its government and economy were highly centralized . The Soviet Union was a one - party federation , governed by the Communist Party with ___MASK49___ as its capital . ___MASK23___ ( tr . ) is a sovereign state in ___MASK80___ , bordered by Russia to the east and northeast , Belarus to the northwest , Poland and ___MASK65___ to the west , Hungary , Romania , and Moldova to the southwest , and the Black Sea and Sea of Azov to the south and southeast , respectively . ___MASK23___ is currently in territorial dispute with Russia over the ___MASK48___ which Russia annexed in 2014 but which ___MASK23___ and most of the international community recognise as Ukrainian . Including Crimea , ___MASK23___ has an area of , making it the largest country entirely within Europe and the 46th largest country in the world . It has a population of about 44 . 5 million , making it the 32nd most populous country in the world . ___MASK49___ ( or ) is the capital and most populous city of ___MASK81___ , with 12 . 2 million residents within the city limits and 16 . 8 million within the urban area . ___MASK49___ has the status of a Russian federal city . ___MASK81___ ( from the  Rus '), also officially known as the Russian Federation , is a country in Eurasia . At , ___MASK81___ is the largest country in the world by surface area , covering more than one - eighth of the ___MASK73___ ' s inhabited land area , and the ninth most populous , with over 140 million people at the end of March 2016 . The European western part of the country is much more populated and urbanised than the eastern , about 77 % of the population live in European ___MASK81___ . ___MASK81___ ' s capital Moscow is one of the largest cities in the world , other major urban centers include Saint Petersburg , Novosibirsk , Yekaterinburg , Nizhny Novgorod and Samara . Simferopol Raion is one of the 25 regions of the ___MASK48___ , currently subject to a territorial dispute between the Russian Federation and Ukraine . The administrative center of the raion is the city of Simferopol which is incorporated as a town of republican significance and is not a part of the district . The Simferopol Raion is situated in the central part of the peninsula . Population : ___MASK31___ is the combined continental landmass of Europe and ___MASK76___ . The term is a portmanteau of its constituent continents . Located primarily in the Northern and Eastern Hemispheres , it is bordered by the ___MASK2___ to the west , the Pacific Ocean to the east , the Arctic Ocean to the north , and by Africa , the Mediterranean Sea , and the Indian Ocean to the south . The division between Europe and ___MASK76___ as two different continents is a historical and cultural construct , with no clear physical separation between them ; thus , in some parts of the world , ___MASK31___ is recognized as the largest of five or six continents . In geology , ___MASK31___ is often considered as a single rigid megablock . However , the rigidity of ___MASK31___ is debated based on the paleomagnet data . The Crimean Oblast ( Ukrainian :   Kryms  ka oblast '' ; Russian :   Krymskaya oblast '' ; Crimean Tatar : Qrm vilâyeti ) was an oblast ( province ) of the former Russian SFSR ( 1945 -- 1954 ) and Ukrainian SSR ( 1954 -- 1991 ) within the Soviet Union . Its capital was the city of Simferopol . The Crimean Oblast replaced the Crimean ASSR on June 30 , 1945 . The oblast was transferred from the Russian SFSR to the Ukrainian SSR on February 19 , 1954 . Sevastopol was a closed city due to its importance as the port of the Soviet ___MASK39___ Fleet and was attached to the Crimean Oblast only in 1978 . Following a referendum held on January 20 , 1991 , the Crimean Oblast was given back its pre - WWII status of Crimean Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic on February 12 , 1991 , by the Supreme Soviet of the Ukrainian SSR . In 1992 , the Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic was transformed into the Autonomous Republic of Crimea within ___MASK23___ , with the exception of the city of Sevastopol whose status , once again due to its strategic importance as the port of the Russian ___MASK39___ Fleet , remained disputed between ___MASK23___ and Russia until 1997 , when it was agreed that it should be treated as a `` city with special status '' within ___MASK23___ . Simferopol City Municipality ( officially " the territory governed by the Simferopol city council ") is one of the 25 regions of the ___MASK48___ , currently subject to a territorial dispute between the Russian Federation and Ukraine . Population : Simferopol ("  " ) is a city on the ___MASK48___ , the status of which is disputed between Ukraine and Russia . As a result of 2014 vote to join Russia , which was held during Russian military intervention , and the subsequent annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation , Simferopol has , de facto , been the administrative centre of the Republic of Crimea though it remains , de jure , the capital of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea . Simferopol is an important political , economic , and transport hub of the peninsula and serves as the administrative center of both Simferopol municipality and Simferopol Raion though it does not belong to the raion . Population :