ABSTRACT
This chapter provides all basic political, economic, and demographic data on a territorial unit of the Russian Federation, Lipetsk Oblast. Archeological research demonstrates that the territory belonging to Lipetsk Oblast used to be the eastern boundary of Kievan Rus. Modern Lipetsk Oblast, located 400 km southeast of Moscow in a basin of the upper Don River, was established in 1954. It was created from parts of Voronezh, Tambov, Orel, Ryazan, and Tula oblasts. When Korolev became chairman of the Lipetsk Council of People’s Deputies in March 1994, his first step was to remove all the reform supporters from the legislative staff. He vigorously opposed the war in Chechnya and the way the privatization campaign was conducted. Lipetsk is a relatively wealthy region that boasts free transportation and comparatively high salaries. Lipetsk Oblast belongs to the Black Earth Association, which is headed by Orel Governor and Federation Council Speaker Yegor Stroev.
