Is Russia in Europe or Asia? It's Both — Transcontinental Giant

Russia spans both Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the world's largest transcontinental country.

The Dividing Line: Ural Mountains

• West of Urals (European Russia): 23% of territory, 77% of population (110M+)
• East of Urals (Asian Russia / Siberia + Far East): 77% of territory, 23% of population (~33M)
• Border: Ural Mountains → Ural River → Caspian Sea → Caucasus watershed (conventional)

European Russia (Core)

• Moscow, St. Petersburg, Volga region, North Caucasus
• Historical heartland, political power, economic center
• Climate: Humid continental (Moscow: -10°C Jan, 19°C Jul)
• Density: 27/km² (vs 2.5/km² in Asia)

Asian Russia (Siberia & Far East)

• Western Siberia: West Siberian Plain — oil/gas (Tyumen, Novosibirsk)
• Central Siberia: Yenisey basin — mining, forests (Krasnoyarsk, Norilsk)
• Eastern Siberia: Lena basin — diamonds, gold (Yakutsk, Mirny)
• Far East: Pacific coast — Vladivostok, Khabarovsk, Sakhalin, Kamchatka
• Climate: Extreme continental (Yakutsk: -40°C Jan, 20°C Jul)

Why It Matters

• Geopolitics: European power with Asian resources/territory
• Identity: Culturally European (Orthodox, Cyrillic, literature); administratively Eurasian
• Organizations: Council of Europe (suspended), OSCE (European) + APEC, SCO, EAEU (Asian/Eurasian)
• Pivot to Asia: Post-2014/2022 — energy, trade, infrastructure reorienting eastward

Other Transcontinental Countries

Turkey, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Egypt, Panama, USA (Alaska), France (overseas), Indonesia, Japan (disputed), Denmark (Greenland). Russia is by far the largest.

Russia isn't "in Europe" or "in Asia" — it is both, with a European core and Asian expanse.