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[[File:Coat of arms of the Soviet Union.svg|alt=|left|180x200px]]
The '''Soviet Union''', officially known as the '''Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR)''', was a [[Marxist-Leninist]] federal [[Socialist state|socialist state]] that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991.

The USSR was established in 1922 as a union of four Soviet socialist republics formed after the [[October Revolution of 1917]], the [[Russian SFSR]], the [[Transcaucasian SFSR]], the [[Ukrainian SSR]] and the [[Byelorussian SSR]]. From 1956 to 1991, the union had 15 member nations in total.

The Soviet Union developed under conditions of extreme pressure provoked by [[Capitalism|capitalist]] powers, from the [[Russian Civil War]], the Nazi invasion, and espionage from the West. Besides the difficulties that it faced, the USSR managed to provide a positive political role for the [[Working class|working people]], especially in a time when workers in the capitalist world were still struggling for basic union rights. 

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