MOSCOW, Russia.

The capital of Russia for most of the 20th century, Moscow was also for 74 years the capital of the Soviet Union and its major industrial, scientific, and cultural centreWith the dissolution of the Soviet Union in December 1991, Russia and 10 other former Soviet republics formed a new and fragile Commonwealth of Independent States with its capital at Minsk, also the capital of Belarus. Moscow remained the capital of the newly independent Russia.
Moscow is situated on the banks of the Moskva (Moscow) River. The centre of the city is the Kremlin, located on a high bank of the river. The Kremlin was a fort first built by Prince Yuri Dolgoruky in the 12th century. It was originally protected by a wooden fence and later by brick walls. During the following centuries churches, palaces, and government buildings were built within the walls. Today it forms the largest concentration of historic buildings in Russia.
Next to the Kremlin is Red Square. It was originally a marketplace at a time when a trade and artisans' settlement had developed outside the Kremlin walls. It became the major centre for political and social events and today is used for big parades and public celebrations and demonstrations. At the southern end of the square are the 16th-century cathedral of St. Basil and the Rossiya Hotel. The massive Lenin Mausoleum stands beside the Kremlin walls, and on the opposite side of the square is the department store GUM. The north side of the square is bounded by the state historical museum.
The main rivers in Moscow are The Yauza River and the Moskva River.
A major new street, Kalinin Prospect, is lined with modern high-rise administrative and apartment buildings. The largest was the headquarters of the Council for Economic Cooperation.
The main street in the city center is Tverskaya Street (formerly Gorky Street), which leads northward from Red Square. It is lined with large stores, hotels, theaters, restaurants, and apartments. Some of the notable buildings are the Council of Ministers, the Central Telegraph Office, and the Intourist, Minsk, and Peking hotels.
The city contains several parks, of which the Gorky Park of Culture and Leisure on the bank of the Moskva River is the largest. In addition to lawns and flowers, it has a fun fair. Smaller parks are scattered around the city centre and along the boulevards. All the parks are landscaped and neatly kept.
The northern suburbs contain the large Sokol'niki Park, a botanical garden, and the Exhibition of Economic Achievements.
Opened in 1959, the exhibition consists of a number of pavilions that display the economic and scientific achievements of the former Soviet Union. Nearby are the impressive obelisk in honor of space exploration and the Television Tower, the tallest structure in Russia. It stands near the All Union Television Center, which contains television and cinema studios.

People
The population of Moscow in the early 1990s had soared to nearly 9 million. The majority of the population of Moscow are Russians, but there are also people from many neighbouring ethnic groups.
Because of the desire of many Russians to live in their capital city, the government has tried to limit excessive growth.

Culture, Education, and Recreation
Moscow contains a wide variety of cultural attractions. One of the best known to foreigners is the Bolshoi Theater of Opera and Ballet. Ballet is particularly popular with Russians, and it is difficult to get tickets for most performances. The ballet also performs in the Palace of Congresses in the Kremlin. There are more than 30 major theaters and concert halls, including the Stanislavsky, Children's Musical, and Central Puppet theaters. Musicians perform in Tchaikovsky Hall, the Conservatory of Music, and the hall of the House of Trade Unions.
There is a permanent Moscow Circus housed in a building near the university. There are many cinemas. Moscow has a large number of art galleries and museums, of which the most famous are the Tretyakov Gallery, the Pushkin Fine Arts Museum, the Museum of Oriental Arts, the Museum of Folk Art, the Literature Museum, and the History Museum.
Moscow is a major centre of education with a large number of schools and other educational establishments. There are more than 70 institutions of higher education that specialise in such subjects as economics, medicine, construction, transport, sport, and education. The most prestigious is Moscow State University with more than 30,000 students. One of the largest in the world, the Lenin Library is a major educational asset. The Russian Academy of Sciences and a number of scientific institutes are also located in the city.
The complex of sports facilities in southwestern Moscow is known as Luzhniki Park. Near the city center there is a huge circular open-air swimming pool, which is heated in winter. Dynamo Stadium on Leningrad Prospect is the home ground for the leading Moscow soccer team.
Economy

Moscow is the largest industrial centre in Russia. About half of the industrial workers are employed in engineering. A wide variety of products are manufactured. These include machine tools, automobiles, ball bearings, and electrical equipment. New industries, such as radio electronics and computer technology, are growing rapidly. Chemicals and textiles are also produced.