Russia Russia is a country that stretches over a vast expanse of Europe and Asia , with an area of 17 , 075 , 400 square kilometres . The largest country in the world by land mass , it covers almost twice the territory of the next - largest country , Canada . It is also close to the United States and Japan across relatively small stretches of water . The capital city is Moscow . History . Formerly the dominant Union of Soviet Socialist Republics ( USSR ) while under Communist rule , Russia is now an independent country and an influential member of the Commonwealth of Independent States , since the Union ' s dissolution in December 1991 . During the Soviet era , Russia was also officially called the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic ( RSFSR ) . Russia is considered the Soviet Union ' s successor state in diplomatic matters . The country is known for its frozen regions , for bringing about Napoleon Bonaparte ' s defeat when he attempted to conquer it , for such dietary staples as borscht and vodka , and for its contributions to , such as " War and Peace " . P . G . Wodehouse once described later examples of the Russian novel as " grey studies of hopeless misery , where nothing happened till page three hundred and eighty , when the moujik decided to commit suicide . " Culture . Russia has also made significant contributions to the development of ballet , influencing the New York school of ballet in the United States . Tchaikvsky ' s " The Nutcracker " is one of the more popular ballets worldwide , and Rudolf Nureyev is considered the most influential Russian dancer of the mid - 20th century . Despite its current independence , Russia is also closely associated with the Communist ideology , to a greater extent even than China , and for the long - standing Cold War which erupted between the USSR and the United States . The earliest known reference to Russia in Muppet productions is indicative of this perception ; in a Wilkins Coffee spot , Wilkins and Wontkins appear in a Communist Russian store , where Wontkins sells " Party Line Coffee " but sneaks capitalist coffee like Wilkins to certain customers . A de - politicized view of Russia can be seen as the March image for the Sesame Street 1978 Calendar , which featured a global travel theme . That same year , " The Muppet Show " featured a Russian - themed opening number in , with Muppet pigs twirling around doing Russian dances . Muppet Ambassadors . Initially , Soviet Russia naturally viewed the Muppets with suspicion . " Sesame Street " in particular was denounced in the Russian newspaper " Sovietsa Kultura " in 1973 as " the latest example of United States cultural imperialism " : Later that same year , however , slight inroads were evident : nine Soviet educators visited the Children ' s Television Workshop offices and studios , and " were especially delighted " by Sam the Robot . The Muppets have occasionally made personal visits to the country as well . In 1984 , Kermit the Frog claimed top - billing over John Denver at a children ' s concert at the American embassy in Moscow . Newscasters referred to the visit as " Kermit sees the Kremlin . " Denver introduced Kermit and asked him why he was there . According to Kermit , " I ' m here visiting other Russian frogs . Actually , I think they ' re all hibernating though . . . It ' s very cold out there . " Denver opined that maybe frogs in Russia might be red , sparking mixed reactions from the audience and from Kermit , who deemed it a " reptilian slur , " despite the fact that he ' s an amphibian . During the same visit , Jim Henson paid a visit to acclaimed Russian puppeteer Sergei Obraztsov , who Henson called " the father of international puppetry . " Henson also presented the older puppeteer with four puppets to add to Obraztsov ' s Moscow Theater puppet museum : a Fraggle , a Skeksis , Beauregard , and Robin the Frog . " They ' re happy to be in such delightful company , " Henson said , and recalled that when he started out , all he knew about puppetry he gleaned from books , and Obraztsov ' s was the first one he read . Obraztsov jokingly referred to Henson as " his son " in the traditions of puppetry . In February 1988 , while the country was still under Soviet rule , Jim Henson attended the American Film Celebration in Moscow , the second American film festival held in the Soviet Union , and conducted a puppetry workshop . Later that year , Kermit and Miss Piggy posed in front of Red Square , an image reproduced in several magazine publications , while filming the Marlo Thomas special " Free to Be . . . a Family " . The special was announced as the first Soviet - American co - production of an entertainment show and had the Muppets participating in a puppet summit with a Russian pig puppet . Also in 1988 , Henson and Anthony Minghella began mining Russian folklore extensively for use in " The StoryTeller " . This is perhaps most evident in " The Soldier and Death , " involving a returning military man in Tsarist Russia . At one point , the soldier uses his gifts to save the Tsar of Russia himself . In 1989 , the governing Soviet television body , Gostelradio , broadcast an episode of " Fraggle Rock " , which drew unprecedented ratings and letters from 3 , 500 viewers . As a result , the organization agreed to allow both " Fraggle Rock " and " The Muppet Show " to air the following fall , becoming the first Western series to air on Soviet television . In 1996 , in the wake of a changing post - Soviet Russia , " Ulitsa Sezam " debuted as a Russian co - production of " Sesame Street " . In keeping with Russian culture , the key local Muppet , Zeliboba , originally designed with an earthy brown coat of fur and leaves , became blue , a color traditionally associated with spirits . Grover has occasionally incorporated elements of Russian culture on the US series as well , with Russian cossack dancing and in a Waiter Grover sketch involving Charlie ' s Russian restaurant .