Pskov Oblast

Pskov Oblast is a federal subject of Russia (an oblast), located in the west of the country. Its administrative center is the city of Pskov. As of the 2021 Census, its population was 599,084. Geography Pskov Oblast is the westernmost federal subject of contiguous Russia (Kaliningrad Oblast, while located further to the west, is an exclave). It borders with Leningrad Oblast in the north, Novgorod Oblast in the east, Tver and Smolensk Oblasts in the southeast, Vitebsk Oblast of Belarus in the south, and with the counties of Latvia (Alūksne Municipality, Balvi Municipality, and Ludza Municipality) and Estonia (Võru County) in the west. In the northwest, Pskov Oblast is limited by Lake Peipus, which makes up most of the state border with Estonia. The oblast is located in the Baltic Sea drainage basin, mostly in the basin of the Narva River. The biggest river of this basin is the Velikaya, which flows across the whole oblast from south to north and drains into Lake Peipus. The drainage basin of the Velikaya covers the whole territory of the oblast, with the exception of relatively minor areas in its southern, eastern, and northeastern parts. The rivers in the southeast drain into the Lovat, which has its source in Belarus and crosses Pskov Oblast from south to north, continuing to Novgorod Oblast. The Lovat is a major tributary of Lake Ilmen and is itself in the Neva River's basin. Another tributary of Lake Ilmen is the Shelon River, which flows in the eastern part of the oblast. Finally, minor areas in the south lie in the basin of the Western Dvina. A short stretch of the Western Dvina makes up the border between Pskov and Tver Oblasts.