abstract:An autonomous republic is a type of administrative division similar to a province or state. A significant number of autonomous republics can be found within the successor states of the Soviet Union, but the majority are located within Russia.
SinceChina's province of Hainanand the AutonomousRepublic of Crimeaforgedfriendly ties in 1996, their exchanges have been dynamicwith cooperationgrowing continuously.
When the Bolsheviks sought to enforce control in the Caucasus in the early 1920s, Dagestan became an autonomous Soviet republic within the Russian Federation.
Of particular interest has been Tamerlan's 2012 trip to the semi-autonomous Russian republic of Dagestan, home to numerous Islamic militant groups that have warred against Moscow's rule.