Astrakhan is located in the south-east of European Russia, in the Caspian Lowland, in the lower reaches of the Volga river. The region is a part of the Southern Federal District and is a border region: by land it borders on the Republic of Kazakhstan and on Azerbaijan Republic, Islamic Republic of Iran, Republic of Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan by sea. The Volgograd region and the Republic of Kalmykia are the Astrakhan region’s neighbours in the Russian Federation. Total area of the region is 49.0 thousand square meters. The region consists of 11 rural areas, 442 villages and settlements. Besides the regional center there are 5 towns in the region – Akhtubinsk, Kamyzyak, Znamensk, Kharabali, and Narimanov. Over 1 million people live in the Astrakhan region. Half of them live in the regional center – Astrakhan City. Astrakhan is famous for its cultural traditions, dating back to the remote past. Representatives of over 140 nations and nationalities live here. All world religions have found here their adherents. Our townsman, poet Velimir Khlebnikov called Astrakhan the triangle of Christ, Mohammed and Buddha. In spite of its multinational structure, Astrakhan has always been and still remains one of the most politically stable regions of Russia.