Declaration of State Sovereignty of the RSFSR
러시아 국가주권 선언
Part of Parade of Sovereignties
On 12 June 1990 the First Congress of People's Deputies of the RSFSR adopted this declaration, proclaiming Russian state sovereignty and the supremacy of the RSFSR constitution and laws over those of the USSR. The vote (907 for, 13 against, 9 abstentions) made explicit what the parade of sovereignties had been building toward: republican law would henceforth trump union law on Russian territory, and union acts contrary to RSFSR sovereign rights would be suspended by the republic. The declaration became the legal cornerstone of the War of Laws, forced Gorbachev toward the Novo-Ogaryovo negotiations, and its anniversary is celebrated as Russia Day.
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Sources
- Wikipedia (RU) Russian Wikipedia: full background on the declaration, vote count (907–13–9), provisions including supremacy of RSFSR law over union law, and Yeltsin as signatory
- Wikipedia (EN) English Wikipedia: the declaration's role in constitutional reform in Russia, its provisions, and the 12 June Russia Day connection
- soviethistory.msu.edu Seventeen Moments in Soviet History (Michigan State University): full English text of the declaration, plus scholarly framing that it challenged the Soviet center's authority and strengthened Yeltsin's claim that legitimacy flowed from elected republican institutions
- johnhelmer.net John Helmer: confirms the supremacy clause mechanism ('the supremacy of the RSFSR Constitution and laws… the effect of acts of the USSR which are contrary to the sovereign rights of the RSFSR shall be suspended') and contextualizes the declaration as the start of secession from the USSR