1991   Boris Yeltsin takes over the mantle of presidency of Russia, the largest and most populous of the fifteen Soviet republics from Michael Gorbachev.

1991   Boris Yeltsin becomes the first elected president of Russia after capturing 57% of the votes.

1991   The city of "Saint Petersburg" Russia's second-largest city and that has many names gets back its old name "Leningrad" that was changed in 1924.

1991   In Russia, the SVR replaces First Chief Directorate FCD of the KGB.

1992   Boris Yeltsin announces that Russia will end the practice of targeting American cities with nuclear missiles.

1992   Human remains found in Yekaterinburg, Russia are identified as Czar Nicholas II and Tsarina Alexandra.

1993   A nuclear accident occurs in Seversk, Russia when a tank containing a highly radioactive solution explodes.

1994   U.S. President Bill Clinton and Russian President Boris Yeltsin sign the Kremlin Accords. The agreement ends the preprogrammed aiming of nuclear missiles toward targets in the United States and Russia.

1996   Jozef Oleksy resigns after charges surface that he spied for Russia.

1996   The International Monetary Fund approves a $10.08 billion loan to Russia to aid in Russian economic reforms. It was the second-largest load made to any borrower by the IMF.

1998   Nicholas II of Russia and his family are buried with state honors in St. Catherine Chapel in St. Petersburg, Russia eighty years they were killed by the Bolsheviks.

1998   Galina Starovoitova is assassinated in St. Petersburg, Russia.

1999   Boris Yeltsin resigns as President of Russia and makes Prime Minister Vladimir Putin acting president until elections could take place.

2000   Vladimir Putin is elected President of Russia, defeating challenger Gennady Zyuganov.

2000   The Ostankino Tower in Moscow, Russia catches fire killing three people

2001   Robert Hanssen is arrested and charged with spying for Russia.

2001   United States President George W. Bush gives notice to Russia of its withdrawal from the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty.

2002   Robert Hanssen is sentenced to life in prison without parole for selling United States secrets to Russia.

2003   Mad cow disease is discovered in U.S. cattle for the first time. Several countries ban U.S. beef including Brazil, Japan, Mexico, Russia, and Australia.

2004   The concrete roof of the Transvaal water park in Moscow, Russia collapses, killing 28 and injuring more than 100. The cause is determined to be a faulty design.

2004   Incumbent Russian president Vladimir Putin defeats five other candidates to win a second term as President of Russia