The Union of Soviet Socialist Republic (Russian: Союз Советских Социалистических Республик, Soyuz Sovetskikh Sotsialisticheskikh Respublik), also known as the Soviet Union (Советский Союз, Sovetskiy Soyuz), and abbreviated as the U.S.S.R. (С.С.С.Р., S.S.S.R.); is a nation which stretches across northern Eurasia. The Soviet Union was established in 1922, becoming the first communist state to exist. Following World War II, the USSR emerged as one of the dominant global powers.