History of Russia and by the 18th century, the Tsardom of Russia had grown to become the Russian Empire, stretching from eastern Poland to the Pacific Ocean. Peasant revolts were common, and all were fiercely suppressed. Russian serfdom was abolished in 1861, but the peasants fared poorly and often turned to revolutionary pressures. In the following decades, reform efforts such as the Stolypin reforms, the constitution of 1906, and the State Duma attempted to open and liberalize the economy and political system, but the tsars refused to relinquish autocratic rule or share their power. The Russian Revolution in 1917 was triggered by a
Edward Snowden asylum in Russia The comment drew harsh criticism by the Russian Foreign Ministry, which noted that Snowden had been granted an extension of his stay until 2020, and said what Morell proposed would be a betrayal. A senior U.S. official said in February 2017 that Russia was considering extraditing Snowden in order to "curry favor" with President Donald Trump. Snowden cited the comment as evidence that he was not a Russian spy. Edward Snowden asylum in Russia Edward Snowden asylum in Russia is part of the aftermath from the global surveillance disclosures made by Edward Snowden. On June 23, 2013, Snowden flew from