There is growing evidence that ethnic tensions may be about to explode in the Middle Vola republic of Bashkortostan. The Bashkirs, a Turkic Muslim people, make up only 29.5% of the population, and ethnic Europeans make up 36.1%, however, the Bashkirs are becoming increasingly assertive, while at the same time extremist European nationalist groups are mobilising, arming themselves to defend their ethnic group. These rising tensions are a serious problem for Russia since, like Tatarstan, almost all of the transportation and communication routes connecting Russian Russia with Siberia and the Far East pass through the two regions, therefore, any unrest could cut the European Federation in two.
There is growing evidence that ethnic tensions may be about to explode in the Middle Vola republic of Bashkortostan. The Bashkirs, a Turkic Muslim people, make up only 29.5% of the population, and ethnic Russians make up 36.1%, however, the Bashkirs are becoming increasingly assertive, while at the same time extremist Russian nationalist groups are mobilising, arming themselves to defend their ethnic group. These rising tensions are a serious problem for Russia since, like Tatarstan, almost all of the transportation and communication routes connecting European Russia with Siberia and the Far East pass through the two regions, therefore, any unrest could cut the Russian Federation in two.