Portal:Ukraine
The Ukraine Portal - Портал України
Ukraine Україна (Ukrainian) | |
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ISO 3166 code | UA |
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which borders it to the east and northeast. It also borders Belarus to the north; Poland and Slovakia to the west; Hungary, Romania and Moldova to the southwest; with a coastline along the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov to the south and southeast. Kyiv is the nation's capital and largest city, followed by Kharkiv, Dnipro, and Odesa. Ukraine's official language is Ukrainian.
During the Middle Ages, Ukraine was the site of early Slavic expansion and the area later became a key centre of East Slavic culture under the state of Kievan Rus', which emerged in the 9th century. The state eventually disintegrated into rival regional powers and was destroyed by the Mongol invasions of the 13th century. The area was then contested, divided, and ruled by a variety of external powers for the next 600 years, including the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, the Austrian Empire, the Ottoman Empire, and the Tsardom of Russia. The Cossack Hetmanate emerged in central Ukraine in the 17th century, but was partitioned between Russia and Poland, and absorbed by the Russian Empire. Ukrainian nationalism developed and, following the Russian Revolution in 1917, the short-lived Ukrainian People's Republic was formed. The Bolsheviks consolidated control over much of the former empire and established the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, which became a constituent republic of the Soviet Union when it was formed in 1922. In the early 1930s, millions of Ukrainians died in the Holodomor, a human-made famine. The German occupation during World War II in Ukraine was devastating, with 7 million Ukrainian civilians killed, including most Ukrainian Jews.
Ukraine gained independence in 1991 as the Soviet Union dissolved, and declared itself neutral. A new constitution was adopted in 1996. A series of mass demonstrations, known as the Euromaidan, led to the establishment of a new government in 2014 after a revolution. Russia then unilaterally annexed Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula, and pro-Russian unrest culminated in a war in the Donbas between Russian-backed separatists and government forces in eastern Ukraine. Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Since the outbreak of war with Russia, Ukraine has continued to seek closer ties with the United States, European Union, and NATO.
Ukraine is a unitary state and its system of government is a semi-presidential republic. A developing country, it is the poorest country in Europe by nominal GDP per capita and corruption remains a significant issue. However, due to its extensive fertile land, pre-war Ukraine was one of the largest grain exporters in the world. Ukraine is considered a middle power in global affairs, and the Ukrainian Armed Force is the fifth largest armed force in the world in terms of both active personnel as well as total number of personnel with the eighth largest defence budget in the world. The Ukrainian Armed Forces also operates one of the largest and most diverse drone fleets in the world. It is a founding member of the United Nations, as well as a member of the Council of Europe, the World Trade Organization, and the OSCE. It is in the process of joining the European Union and has applied to join NATO. (Full article...)
In the news
- 25 December 2024 – Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Russian strikes against Ukrainian infrastructure, Ukrainian energy crisis
- A series of Russian ballistic missile and drone strikes target critical energy infrastructure in cities across in Ukraine, killing at least two people, injuring 20 others, and causing widespread emergency blackouts. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy condemns Russian President Vladimir Putin for the "inhumane" attacks on Ukrainian infrastructure. (The Kyiv Independent) (The Guardian) (RTÉ)
- 21 December 2024 – Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Attacks in Russia during the Russian invasion of Ukraine
- At least seven Ukrainian drones strike Kazan, Russia, six of which reportedly hit residential areas, including a 32-story apartment building. (Ukrainska Pravda) (Reuters)
- 20 December 2024 – Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Attacks in Russia during the Russian invasion of Ukraine, 2024 Kursk offensive
- A Ukrainian missile strike kills six people and injures 10 others in Rylsk, Kursk Oblast, Russia, according to acting Kursk Oblast governor Alexander Khinshtein. Russia says that it will raise the issue of the missile strike at the United Nations Security Council. (Reuters)
- Kryvyi Rih strikes, Kyiv strikes
- At least one person is killed and eight others are injured in Russian missile strikes on civilian infrastructure in Kryvyi Rih and Kyiv, Ukraine. (The Kyiv Independent) (Reuters)
- 19 December 2024 – Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Military aids during the Russian invasion of Ukraine, United Kingdom and the Russian invasion of Ukraine
- British defence secretary John Healey announces a proposal to send military advisors to train Ukrainian forces. (BBC News)
Featured pictures
Did you know (auto-generated)
- ... that 1920s belles-lettres books published by the State Publishing House of Ukraine sold out more rapidly than similar books published elsewhere in the Soviet Union, despite the higher average price?
- ... that in 2014 the European Theatre Convention started a programme known as Dialogue of Cultures to support exchanges with theatres in Ukraine and other Eastern European countries?
- ... that the Dvorichna settlement hromada has remained divided between Russia and Ukraine since the 2022 Kharkiv counteroffensive?
- ... that Mali and Niger broke off diplomatic relations with Ukraine over the country's alleged support for rebel groups in the Battle of Tinzaouaten?
- ... that following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, a diverse group of exiled Russian public figures formed the Anti-War Committee of Russia to unite different political movements to oppose the war?
- ... that Monika Buczkowska, who, as a student in Poznań, performed as Mozart's Susanna, was a soloist in Beethoven's Ninth Symphony at a charity concert for Ukraine at the Alte Oper?
More did you know -
- ... that Vasyl Avramenko is often referred as "The father of the Ukrainian dance"?
- ... that the Kryvbas economic region in Ukraine is one of the largest iron ore and steel industry centers in Europe?
- ... that although the secular music of Mykola Leontovych was well known in the twentieth century, the Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom was little known because of a ban on sacred music in the Soviet Union?
- ... that the married Western Ukrainian Clergy became a hereditary caste that dominated western Ukrainian society?
- ... that at its first years Kiev Zoo had to move its animals into the food storage of the main Kiev railway station for the winter?
- ... that according to legend, a tunnel leads from the Kamianets-Podilskyi Castle to the Khotyn Fortress which is 20 kilometres (12 mi) away?
Selected article -
Odesa (also spelled Odessa) is the third most populous city and municipality in Ukraine and a major seaport and transport hub located in the south-west of the country, on the northwestern shore of the Black Sea. The city is also the administrative centre of the Odesa Raion and Odesa Oblast, as well as a multiethnic cultural centre. As of January 2021, Odesa's population was approximately 1,010,537.[1] On 25 January 2023, its historic city centre was declared a World Heritage Site and added to the List of World Heritage in Danger by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee in recognition of its multiculturality and 19th-century urban planning. The declaration was made in response to the bombing of Odesa during the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which has damaged or destroyed buildings across the city.
In classical antiquity a large Greek settlement existed at its location no later than the middle of the 6th century BC. It has been researched as a possible site of the ancient Greek settlement of Histria. The first chronicle mention of the Slavic settlement-port of Kotsiubijiv, which was part of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, dates back to 1415, when a ship was sent from here to Constantinople by sea. After the Grand Duchy lost control, the port and its surroundings became part of the domain of the Ottoman Empire in 1529, under the name Hacibey, and remained in it until the Ottomans' defeat in the Russo-Turkish War (1787–1792). In 1794, a decree of the Russian empress Catherine II was issued to establish a navy harbor and trading place in Khadjibey, which was named Odessa soon after. From 1819 to 1858, Odesa was a free port. During the Soviet period, it was an important trading port and a naval base. During the 19th century, Odesa was the fourth largest city of the Russian Empire, after Moscow, Saint Petersburg and Warsaw. Its historical architecture is more Mediterranean than Russian, having been heavily influenced by French and Italian styles. Some buildings are built in a mixture of different styles, including Art Nouveau, Renaissance and Classicist. (Full article...)
In the news
- 25 December 2024 – Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Russian strikes against Ukrainian infrastructure, Ukrainian energy crisis
- A series of Russian ballistic missile and drone strikes target critical energy infrastructure in cities across in Ukraine, killing at least two people, injuring 20 others, and causing widespread emergency blackouts. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy condemns Russian President Vladimir Putin for the "inhumane" attacks on Ukrainian infrastructure. (The Kyiv Independent) (The Guardian) (RTÉ)
- 21 December 2024 – Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Attacks in Russia during the Russian invasion of Ukraine
- At least seven Ukrainian drones strike Kazan, Russia, six of which reportedly hit residential areas, including a 32-story apartment building. (Ukrainska Pravda) (Reuters)
- 20 December 2024 – Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Attacks in Russia during the Russian invasion of Ukraine, 2024 Kursk offensive
- A Ukrainian missile strike kills six people and injures 10 others in Rylsk, Kursk Oblast, Russia, according to acting Kursk Oblast governor Alexander Khinshtein. Russia says that it will raise the issue of the missile strike at the United Nations Security Council. (Reuters)
- Kryvyi Rih strikes, Kyiv strikes
- At least one person is killed and eight others are injured in Russian missile strikes on civilian infrastructure in Kryvyi Rih and Kyiv, Ukraine. (The Kyiv Independent) (Reuters)
- 19 December 2024 – Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Military aids during the Russian invasion of Ukraine, United Kingdom and the Russian invasion of Ukraine
- British defence secretary John Healey announces a proposal to send military advisors to train Ukrainian forces. (BBC News)
Selected anniversaries for December
- December 1, 1991 — Ukraine's first presidential election takes place.
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Notes
- ^ Чисельність наявного населення України на 1 січня 2022 [Number of Present Population of Ukraine, as of January 1, 2022] (PDF) (in Ukrainian and English). Kyiv: State Statistics Service of Ukraine. Archived (PDF) from the original on 4 July 2022.