What is USSR meaning? What is USSR flag and symbol like? which countries were a part of USSR? What does USSR stand for?

“USSR” or “the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics” is the name used for the 15 countries that got united and governed under Communism ideology. It existed from 1922 to 1991.

We will focus on the states that became independent countries after the union collapsed.

KAZAKHSTAN after independence from USSR

Kazakhstan is like a child of yours who’s too normal and whenever someone asks how your kid is doing, you’ll be like, “Ummmm, OK I guess!”.

It’s a neutral state and has a “So so” relationship with everyone. Russia is a friend as much as the EU and the US!

Astana, Kazakhstan’s capital

Astana is its capital, is home for 1 million out of 18 million people identifying as Kazakh.

This city has hosted some international meetings and festivals in it and is a good example of “Minding your own business” kind of thing!

People in Kazakhstan

Most people have Central Asian look (the country is located in central Asia), but Europeans don’t mind accepting them as one of their own, while they still have not accepted Kazakhstan to compete in Eurovision contest yet.

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Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan after independence from USSR

These three neighbors are pretty similar in terms of people and culture.

People in this region are one of the most hospital and kindest you’ll ever meet, a lot of them would invite you to their homes for a cup of tea or a meal without expecting you to pay for anything.

These countries are too wallet-friendly! You don’t have to have a big pile of cash to enjoy the sceneries and amazing places. Remember that exchanging rate is different if you go to the bank or black market, especially in Uzbekistan. Ask a local for exchanging places in the market, they give you a better deal compared to the banks.

Enclaves problem between Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan

After becoming independent, as I mentioned before, because of drunk Russian geographers, there are numerous examples of enclaves and separation from the mainland in the previous communist states and these countries have one of the most complicated ones.

If you zoom in on the map, you can see the exclaves and enclaves of them all and the sad part is that because of the fear to lose their authorization on their lands, the governments do not allow people who live in these areas to travel outside their villages. They are stuck over there for life, dealing with poverty, no job and lack of basic amenities.

Their countries simply don’t issue a passport for these citizens and the hosting country has border control which means no crossing!

The Silk Road

This famous old trading road crosses a few countries including these three beautiful ones.

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Famous cities

Dushanbe, Bishkek, and Tashkent are the capitals and the biggest cities in the region and the ones with the most amenities and brand hotels like Hilton and Hyatt.

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Turkmenistan

Turkmenistan is the rich kid out of all the other former Soviet states! It has natural gas as well as oil. Most of the country is covered by desert and despite their size, the population is about 6 million.

Human rights

Turkmenistan is the second most isolated state in the world after North Korea. People learn to worship their President, Berdimuhamedov since childhood. They refer to him as “The protector” and journalists who write or talk against him end up in jail within a blink.

It would be a weird situation to travel there. their capital, Ashgabat is full of white marble high rises, clean and the streets are empty. you’d feel like you are being watched at all times which is true.