Topic 11. Composition of the federation in Russia and the constitutional and legal status of the Russian Federation and its constituent entities

The Russian Federation consists exclusively of subjects of the federation; unlike many federal states, it does not include territories that are not subjects of the federation (the capital district, federal territories or possessions, associated states, etc.); various intrastate formations (federal districts, interregional associations of economic interaction, free economic zones, closed administrative-territorial formations, associations and unions of municipalities, etc.) are not subjects of the federation.

The composition of the Russian Federation is constitutionally enshrined in Part 1 of Art. 65 of the Basic Law, which names all 89 of its subjects: 21 republics, 6 territories, 49 regions, 2 federal cities, 1 autonomous region and 10 autonomous okrugs. However, the constitutionally established composition of the federation in Russia can be changed, and the Constitution of the Russian Federation provides for the possibility of such a change:

a) in connection with a change (increase) in the territory of the Russian Federation (the possibility of secession, i.e., the exit of any subject from the Russian Federation, the Constitution of the Russian Federation does not directly allow);

b) within existing boundaries. In the first case, we are talking about the admission of a new subject to the Russian Federation (Part 2 of Article 65). A change in the composition of the Russian Federation within its existing borders is possible due to two circumstances:

1) in connection with the formation of a new subject of the Russian Federation within Russia (part 2 of article 65);

2) in connection with a change in status by any subject. In accordance with the Constitution of the Russian Federation, all subjects of the Russian Federation, regardless of belonging to one or another type, are equal, however, the Basic Law directly provides for the possibility of changing the status of a subject of the Russian Federation (part 5 of article 66), therefore, a change in the status of a subject of the Russian Federation entails a change in the composition of the Russian Federation with the previous quantitative set of subjects of the Russian Federation.

The conditions and procedure for all options for changing the composition of the Russian Federation must be regulated at the level of a federal constitutional law. In particular, in the development of the constitutional provisions, the Federal Constitutional Law No. 17.12.2001-FKZ of December 6, XNUMX "On the procedure for admission to the Russian Federation and formation of a new subject of the Russian Federation" was adopted.

Admission to the Russian Federation of a new subject of the Russian Federation. In order to eliminate the legal vacuum, the corresponding mechanism should be fixed, although the possibility of admitting a new subject to the Russian Federation seems to be generally hypothetical. At the same time, such a situation cannot be completely ruled out: the integration processes with Belarus, in particular, give rise, among other things, to the proposal to unite Russia and Belarus into one state by gradually incorporating Belarusian regions into Russia, starting from the east; requests were made, which find support among a number of Russian politicians, for the annexation of Abkhazia, South Ossetia, Transnistria, Crimea, etc. to Russia.

Admission to Russia of a new subject of the Russian Federation is possible only on a voluntary basis, while both a foreign state and its part can be admitted to the Russian Federation. Such a decision, formalized by the adoption of a special federal constitutional law, should be based, among other things, on an international treaty with a given state, concluded exclusively at the initiative of the latter. In order to gradually integrate the new entity into the economic, financial, credit and legal systems of the Russian Federation, as well as into the system of public authorities, a transitional period may be established by an international treaty.

The exercise of the powers of the President of the Russian Federation to conclude international treaties in this situation is preceded by the obligatory notification of both chambers of the Russian Parliament and the Government of the Russian Federation of the proposal to conclude an appropriate treaty and, if necessary, consultations with them, as well as an appeal to the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation with a request to verify the constitutionality of the signed treaty. Ratification of the concluded international treaty (subject to a positive decision of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation) is carried out in the Federal Assembly simultaneously with the adoption of the federal constitutional law on the admission of a new subject to the Russian Federation, which determines the starting points of its status (name, boundaries, features and terms of the transition period and etc.).

The formation of a new subject within the Russian Federation seems to be a more realistic situation; in addition, the trend of enlargement of Russian regions has ceased to be predictable - in accordance with the Federal constitutional law of March 25.03.2004, 1 No. 1-FKZ, a new subject of the Russian Federation (Perm Territory) was formed as part of the Russian Federation as a result of the merger of the Perm Region and the Komi-Permyatsk Autonomous District a subject of the Russian Federation is considered to be formed from December 2005, 31, while from the date of the formation of the Perm Territory, a transitional period is provided (but not later than January 2007, 1990), during which the formation of state authorities of the Territory and the completion of the settlement of other issues). Similar (unifying) processes are beginning in relations between the Krasnoyarsk Territory and its constituent Taimyr and Evenk Autonomous Okrugs, the Irkutsk Region and the Ust-Orda Buryat Autonomous Okrug. Proposals were made to merge several constituent entities of the Russian Federation into one (Moscow and the Moscow region, St. territories - the Amur, Magadan, Kamchatka and Sakhalin regions, the Khabarovsk and Primorsky territories and the Jewish Autonomous Region - into one Far Eastern province), on the formation of the Ural Republic on the basis of the Sverdlovsk, Chelyabinsk and Kurgan regions, on the return of the Jewish Autonomous Region to the Khabarovsk Territory, which came out from its composition in the early XNUMXs, etc.

At present, the law fixes the mechanism for the formation of a new subject of the Russian Federation only as a result of the merger of two or more subjects of the Russian Federation bordering on each other. At the same time, the formation of a new subject of the Russian Federation may entail the cessation of the existence of all or individual merging subjects of the Russian Federation, i.e., situations of the so-called absorption by one subject of another, joining one to another, are possible.

The formation of a new subject within the Russian Federation is possible only on a voluntary basis, at the initiative of the interested subjects of the Russian Federation (i.e., the subjects on whose territory a new subject is formed), manifested exclusively through regional referendums in these subjects of the Russian Federation. The corresponding proposal is sent to the President of the Russian Federation, who notifies the chambers of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation and the Government of the Russian Federation about it and, if necessary, consults with them.

The formation of a new subject of the Russian Federation within the Russian Federation is formalized by the adoption of a special federal constitutional law, the draft of which is submitted to the State Duma by the President of the Russian Federation in the event of positive results of referendums in all interested subjects of the Russian Federation. If the results of the referendum in at least one subject turn out to be negative, then a second referendum on this issue in all regions is possible no earlier than in a year. In such a law, along with the general principles of the status of a new subject of the Russian Federation, issues of a transitional nature are also defined: succession, settlement of property relations (including changes to the law on the federal budget), the functioning of various state authorities, the validity of previously adopted legal acts, etc. Changing the status a subject of the Russian Federation is also possible on the basis of the procedure provided for by the federal constitutional law (part 5 of article 66 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation). However, such a law has not yet been adopted, although the need for its adoption is obvious: the actual differences in the legal status of the subjects of the Russian Federation suggest the possibility (and often the desire) to change (primarily increase) their status by some subjects of the Russian Federation (the transformation of the Kaliningrad region into the Baltic Republic, the Sverdlovsk region into the Ural Republic, the Jewish Autonomous Region to the Jewish (Birobidzhan) Region, etc.)

In all cases of changes in the composition of the Russian Federation, changes must be made to Art. 65 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation on the basis of the relevant federal constitutional law (Article 137 of the Constitution). But changes to this article can also be made with the composition of the Russian Federation unchanged - when one or another subject of the Russian Federation changes its name. Similar changes to Art. 65 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation have already been introduced: since 1996 they changed their names, in particular, the Republic of Ingushetia, the Republic of Kalmykia, the Republic of North Ossetia - Alania, the Chuvash Republic - Chuvashia, the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug - Yugra. The inclusion in such cases of a new name of the subject of the Russian Federation in Part 1 of Art. 65 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation by decree of the President of the Russian Federation on the basis of a decision of the state authorities of the relevant subject does not mean a change in the status of the subject of the Russian Federation and the composition of the Russian Federation.

11.2. Fundamentals of the constitutional and legal status of the Russian Federation and its subjects

In characterizing Russian federalism, it is important to clarify the status of the main subjects of federal relations: the Russian Federation as a whole and the subjects of the Russian Federation as components of the whole.

The principles of Russian federalism predetermine the foundations of the constitutional and legal status of the Russian Federation, the main elements of which are:

▪ federal constituent power;

▪ state sovereignty;

▪ territorial supremacy of Russia (in this case, the territory of the Russian Federation has not only internal, state-legal, but also international legal significance, includes not only the territories of all subjects of the Russian Federation, but also such spaces as the territorial sea, internal waters, airspace) ;

▪ unified federal citizenship;

▪ state language;

▪ federal budget, federal state property, unified customs, monetary, credit and tax systems;

▪ unified legal system;

▪ the system of federal government bodies, a unified judicial system and a system of prosecutors;

▪ common foreign policy, membership in interstate associations;

▪ unified Armed Forces;

▪ constitutional consolidation of the subjects of exclusive jurisdiction of the Russian Federation;

▪ the presence of state symbols of Russia: coat of arms, anthem, flag, capital.

Thus, the status of the Russian Federation includes the most important features of its federal statehood. It is characterized primarily by the fact that the Russian Federation is a sovereign state, a full-fledged subject of the international community, possessing full state power throughout its territory, with the exception of those powers that, in accordance with the federal Constitution, are administered by the subjects of the Russian Federation.

For any federal state, it is extremely important to achieve harmony in relations between parts (subjects of the federation) and the whole (the federation itself). Most of the world's federations are symmetrical in terms of the status of their constituent parts, that is, they consist of subjects of the same order. In some federal states, the subjects of the federation have a different scope of powers - asymmetric federations. From a legal point of view, there are no absolutely symmetrical federations, and in all federal states certain elements of asymmetry take place.

In accordance with Part 1 of Art. 5 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation, the subjects of the Russian Federation are republics, territories, regions, cities of federal significance, an autonomous region and autonomous districts. A literal interpretation of this norm allows us to conclude that the symmetrical nature of the federation is enshrined in the Constitution of the Russian Federation. Moreover, the constitutional text contains a number of provisions on the equality of subjects of the Russian Federation (parts 1 and 4 of article 5, part 2 of article 72, article 77, etc.).

Since all subjects of the Russian Federation are state entities, the general principles of their constitutional and legal status are consonant with the main elements of the status of the Russian Federation:

▪ own system of state power, including constituent power (the independence of regions in this area is not unlimited, state power bodies of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation are an integral part of the unified system of state power of Russia);

▪ own legal system (but being an integral part of the legal system of the Russian Federation);

▪ own subjects of competence (along with the opportunity to participate in solving federal issues);

▪ own territory (but only land; borders between constituent entities of the Russian Federation can be changed by their mutual consent, but with the approval of this decision by the Federation Council);

▪ their property, budget, system of regional taxes and fees (but within the framework of federal regulation of the fundamentals of property relations);

▪ participation in international and foreign economic relations, the right to cooperate with each other (but with the participation or under the control of the federal center, in particular the relations of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation with foreign states or their constituent parts are regulated by Federal Law dated January 04.01.99, 4 No. XNUMX-FZ “On coordination international and foreign economic relations of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation");

▪ own state symbols (but used along with the state symbols of the Russian Federation).

When characterizing the common elements of the constitutional and legal status of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation, it is necessary to bear in mind the following. Firstly, the set of these components is not normatively fixed, and different approaches are possible in different sources; secondly, not all elements of the status of the Russian Federation can be automatically “projected” onto the status of a constituent entity of the Russian Federation (in particular, the possession of state sovereignty, the presence of its own Armed Forces, systems of certain state bodies, etc.; all constituent entities of the Russian Federation are an integral part of the Russian Federation, and since the sovereignty of the Russian Federation extends to its entire territory, it is impossible for any other sovereign entities to exist within the Russian Federation; state sovereignty is indivisible, and there cannot be two sovereigns on one territory); thirdly, in determining the content of their status, the subjects of the Russian Federation are not completely free and independent, and they are bound primarily by the provisions of the foundations of the constitutional order of Russia, which are the same for the entire state and can only be changed through the adoption of a new Constitution of the Russian Federation.

Despite the indisputable presence of common features in the characterization of the legal status of the subjects of the Russian Federation and the equality of the subjects of the Russian Federation, there are certain differences in both individual groups of subjects of the Russian Federation and individual subjects of the Russian Federation, regardless of belonging to a particular group. Even some norms of the Constitution of the Russian Federation and other federal legal acts make it possible to speak of a de facto asymmetric federation in Russia. So, part 2 of Art. 5 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation defines the status of republics as states that have their own constitution, unlike other subjects of the Russian Federation; Part 2 Art. 68 gives the republics the right to establish their state languages, although there are many more national languages ​​in the Russian Federation than there are 21 republics in Russia; the basic laws of the republics (constitutions), in contrast to the charters of other subjects of the Russian Federation, can be adopted by holding republican referendums (parts 1 and 2 of article 66 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation, subparagraph "a", paragraph 1 of article 5 of the Federal Law of 06.10.1999 No. 184-FZ "On the General Principles of Organization of Legislative (Representative) and Executive Bodies of State Power of the Subjects of the Russian Federation"); Part 3 Art. 66 enables the autonomous region and autonomous districts to have a special nominal federal law on the corresponding autonomy.

In the educational and scientific literature, all subjects of the Russian Federation are traditionally divided into three main groups: republics (states); territories, regions, cities of federal significance (territorial formations); national-territorial formations (autonomous region and autonomous regions). This also gives reason to talk about differences in their legal status. And the very constitutional possibility of a subject of the Russian Federation changing its status (part 5 of article 66) implies differences in the status of individual regions. All such provisions, internal contradictions of Russian legislation provide grounds for substantiating the different status of the constituent parts of Russia, primarily the republics, in comparison with other subjects of the Russian Federation.

Thus, the status of a subject of the Russian Federation includes not only the traditional set of rights and obligations, but also belonging to a certain type of subjects. At the same time, the status of a subject of the Russian Federation includes all the rights fixed not only in the Constitution of the Russian Federation, but also in other legal acts.

The status of individual subjects of the Russian Federation may also be specified in federal laws and other legal acts. Examples include Law of the Russian Federation No. 15.04.1993-4802 dated April 1, XNUMX "On the status of the capital of the Russian Federation", federal laws on special economic zones (in the Kaliningrad, Magadan regions, etc.), resolutions of the Government of the Russian Federation on federal target programs of economic, social , cultural development of individual regions, etc.

The characteristic of the constitutional and legal status of such subjects of the Russian Federation as autonomous regions has certain features. The main one is that all autonomous okrugs, with the exception of Chukotka, are part of the territory or region (the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug in 1992, in compliance with constitutional procedures, withdrew from the Magadan Region and, in accordance with the law, is directly part of the Russian federation). Such subjects of the Russian Federation are called "complex", "compound", "complex", "matryoshka", etc. predetermines the specifics of the status of 16 Russian regions (more than 1/5 of all subjects of the Russian Federation). It turns out that one entity with equal rights is a part of another, equally equal (and hence the problems of territory, the formation of state authorities, rule-making, relationships with each other and with the federal center, etc.) arise.

Consideration of the status of complex constituent entities of the Russian Federation is impossible without taking into account the legal position contained in the Decree of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation of July 14.07.1997, 12 No. 4-P "On the case of the interpretation of the provision contained in part 66 of Article XNUMX of the Constitution of the Russian Federation on the inclusion of the Autonomous Okrug into the territory, region" .

The Constitutional Court, in particular, pointed out that the inclusion of an Autonomous Okrug into a Krai, Oblast means that the Krai, Oblast has a single territory and population, the constituent parts of which are the territory and population of the Autonomous Okrug, as well as state authorities whose powers extend to the territory of autonomous districts in cases and within the limits provided for by federal law, charters of the relevant subjects of the Russian Federation and agreements between their state authorities. Inclusion of the territory of an autonomous okrug into the territory of a krai or oblast does not mean that the autonomous okrug loses its territory and that it is absorbed by the krai or oblast (although the autonomous okrug is a constituent entity of the Russian Federation and is at the same time an integral, albeit a special, part of the krai or oblast). It's just a matter of different levels of power.

The inclusion of an autonomous okrug in a krai, oblast also means recognition of the population of the okrug as an integral part of the population of the krai, oblast, and this predetermines the right of the population of the autonomous okrug to participate in the formation of state authorities of the krai, region and the corresponding obligation of the state authorities of the okrug to ensure the implementation of this right.

The state of inclusion of an autonomous okrug into a krai or oblast determines the peculiarities of the status of not only the okrug, but also the krai and oblasts that it belongs to. Such an entry in no way detracts from the status of the Autonomous Okrug as an equal subject of the Russian Federation (in particular, it does not infringe on its ability to participate in the contractual process with other subjects of the Russian Federation, as well as with the federal center), does not make it dependent on the territory, region; moreover, such a state gives rise to the obligation of both parties to build their relations (including relations with other subjects of the Russian Federation and the federal authorities) taking into account the interests of each other.

An analysis of the constitutional and legal status of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation from the point of view of their equality is impossible without taking into account two fundamental provisions. First, "equality" is not "full rights". The constitutional possibility of concluding agreements between the Russian Federation and its subjects does not equalize the subjects of these agreements. There cannot be an agreement between the Russian Federation and its subject as a state with equal rights (all the more so since the Constitution allows for the possibility of concluding agreements between state authorities of the Russian Federation and its subjects). A part of the whole cannot be equal to this whole, let alone prevail over it. The constituent entities of the Russian Federation are not equal in rights with Russia, but among themselves and in relations with federal government bodies.

Secondly, in the Constitution of the Russian Federation we are talking about equality, but not about the equality of the subjects of the Russian Federation, about equality in rights, but not about actual equality. Just as the citizens of the state cannot be actually equal (although they are all equal, legally equal), so the constituent parts of the state cannot be actually equal (even at the same specific level). The subjects of the Russian Federation are not equal in size of territory, population, national composition, economic potential, etc. (in particular, Moscow accounts for 0,3% of the territory, but almost 10% of the population of the Russian Federation, more than 1/3 of federal budget revenues) . Nevertheless, it is quite obvious that in a single federal state, all subjects of the Russian Federation should have equal rights, equal opportunities in exercising the political, socio-economic and other rights of their peoples and each individual. And this equality should be manifested mainly in relations with the state authorities of the Russian Federation, in granting the subjects of the same scope of rights and powers in the subjects of their jurisdiction and the joint jurisdiction of the Russian Federation and the constituent entities of the Russian Federation.

The tendency to equalize the status of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation has become one of the obvious, manifested trends in intra-federal relations in modern Russia.

Author: Nekrasov S.I.

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