Far Eastern Republic
The Far Eastern Republic (Russian: Дальневосто́чная Респу́блика (ДВР); English transliteration: Dalnevostochnaya Respublika (DVR)) was a nominally independent state established in the former Russian Far East and Siberia east of Lake Baikal on April 6, 1920. It was created by the new Bolshevik government for the reasons of external politics, as a "buffer state" between the RSFSR and the territories occupied by Japan. Although nominally independent, it was mostly controlled by RSFSR.
After the Japanese evacuated Vladivostok, on November 15 1922 the Far Eastern Republic was merged into the RSFSR.
It occupied the territory of modern Chita Oblast, Amur Oblast, Khabarovsk Krai, and Primorsky Krai of Russia (was: Transbaikal, Amur, and Primorsky oblasts). Before October 1920 its capital was Verkhneudinsk (now Ulan-Ude), and after—Chita.
Postage stamps
The Far Eastern Republic issued a number of postage stamps during its brief existence. The first stamps were issued in late 1920 for local usage only in the coastal provinces, and consisted of overprints on Imperial Russian Arms issues, later joined by 4 stamps of an original design. Other areas continued to use locally issued stamps well into 1921, such as the Semenov surcharges in Chita, and the Blagoveshchensk issue in the Amur Province. The central government in Chita issued a definitive set in 1921-1922 which was widely used throughout the Russian Far East up to February 1924. After Vladivostok and surroundings split off from the Far Eastern Republic in May 1921, various locallly overprinted stamps were issued there as well. Several of these stamps were produced in large numbers, and are readily available today, while others are extremely scarce or rare. Genuine usages on cover are seldom seen for some issues, and somewhat scarce for most. Some alleged stamp issues of the Far Eastern Republic should be treated with caution, as there is no evidence they were ever postally used. These include the so-called Nikolaevsk-on-Amur issue and the 1923 Vladivostok Airmail issue. Fantasy issues also exist, such as the "Pribaikal" overprints.