On his watch, oil-rich Kazakhstan managed to get out of its deep economic crisis following the breakup of the Soviet Union in 1991 and has seen annual growth rates of around 10% over the last few years.

ECONOMIST: President Nazarbaev wins again

Two decades ago the breakup of the Soviet Union left Russia's defense industry on the verge of collapse.

FORBES

It hadn't won gold in the sport since it started competing in the Olympics as an independent country following the breakup of the Soviet Union.

WSJ: Social Media

Some of their radars are not even in Russia, due to the breakup of the Soviet Union, and the satellites in their warning network are starting to fail.

CENTERFORSECURITYPOLICY: Center For Security Policy