Russia Day: A Reflective Look at June 12 and the Nation’s Heart

He was given a day off, and that suited him just fine. People often mark June 12 as a shared holiday, though its origins trace back to 1990, when the first congress of people’s deputies under Boris Yeltsin’s leadership declared a state sovereignty that signaled the end of the Soviet Union and a turbulent decade ahead. The day used to be known as the Day of Adoption of the Declaration of State Sovereignty of the RSFSR, a mouthful that few found easy to grasp. Sovereignty sounded like independence, yet the RSFSR was not supposed to be dependent on anyone, while the Russian Federation inherited obligations from the wider Soviet framework. It is curious how these legal threads were left to unravel in history. Today, June 12 stands simply as Russia Day. There is no need to chase political or historical theories behind the name. A country, after all, should have a day that belongs to its people. Let Russia have June 12.