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 a middle power 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
- 12 October 2024 – Russo-Ukrainian war
- Ukrainian conscription crisis
- Local media outlets report that Ukrainian military recruitment officers raided shopping centers, bars, restaurants, and a large concert venue across several Ukrainian cities including Kyiv, Dnipro, and Kharkiv to detain men not in compliance with conscription orders. (AP)
- 11 October 2024 – Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Eastern Ukraine campaign
- Battle of Toretsk
- The military administrator of the city of Toretsk in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine, reports that more than half of the city has been taken by Russian Armed Forces, with the Armed Forces of Ukraine fighting back at eight different locations. (Reuters)
- 10 October 2024 – Russian invasion of Ukraine
- The World Bank approves a new financial intermediary fund consisting of grants from the United States, Japan, Canada, and other countries coupled with interest from frozen Russian assets to give to Ukraine as part of a $50 billion loan. (Reuters)
- Ukraine's Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War confirms the death of journalist Victoria Roshchyna, who had been held prisoner by Russia since August 2023. (The Kyiv Independent)
- 7 October 2024 – Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Crimea attacks
- An oil terminal in Feodosia, the largest oil facility in Russian-occupied Crimea, catches fire following an overnight drone attack by Ukrainian forces. Russian state media reports that a state of emergency has been declared in Feodosia due to a "human-made disaster". (Ukrainska Pravda)
- Eastern Ukraine campaign
Featured pictures
Did you know (auto-generated)
- ... that Jenya Kazbekova, a competition climber on Ukraine's 2024 Olympic team, is the daughter and granddaughter of competition climbing medalists?
- ... that Olga Onuch is believed to be the first professor of Ukrainian politics in the English-speaking world?
- ... that some severe environmental impacts of the invasion of Ukraine can be seen from space?
- ... that Ruslana Pysanka, who hosted a Ukrainian television program with Volodymyr Zelenskyy, died as a refugee in Germany?
- ... that Sarah Ashton-Cirillo, covering the Russian invasion of Ukraine, said that Ukrainians care less about her being transgender than Americans do?
- ... that Mali and Niger broke off diplomatic relations with Ukraine over the country's alleged support for rebel groups in the Battle of Tinzaouaten?
More did you know -
- ... that Ukrainian composer Mykola Leontovych (pictured), known for the "Carol of the Bells", was nicknamed "Ukrainian Bach" in France?
- ... 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 the Privat Group is one of the few Ukrainian companies that own industries in the United States?
- ... that according to legend, a tunnel leads from the Kamianets-Podilskyi Castle to the Khotyn Fortress which is 20 kilometres (12 mi) away?
- ... that journalist Savik Shuster who used to work for Russian TV channels now prefers to work for the Ukrainian TV because he felt the Russian Government was limiting his journalistic freedom?
Selected article -
The COVID-19 pandemic in Ukraine has resulted in 5,541,063[1] confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 109,923[1] deaths.
The virus was confirmed to have spread to Ukraine when the country's first case was confirmed to be hospitalized in Chernivtsi Oblast on 3 March 2020, a man who had travelled from Italy to Romania by plane and then arrived in Ukraine by car. An emergency was declared on 20 March 2020 in Kyiv Oblast, Chernivtsi Oblast, Zhytomyr Oblast, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast, and the city of Kyiv. New infections and deaths started to break records by late October 2021. By then, a total of 2.8 million coronavirus cases and 64,936 COVID-19 related deaths had occurred in Ukraine. (Full article...)
In the news
- 12 October 2024 – Russo-Ukrainian war
- Ukrainian conscription crisis
- Local media outlets report that Ukrainian military recruitment officers raided shopping centers, bars, restaurants, and a large concert venue across several Ukrainian cities including Kyiv, Dnipro, and Kharkiv to detain men not in compliance with conscription orders. (AP)
- 11 October 2024 – Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Eastern Ukraine campaign
- Battle of Toretsk
- The military administrator of the city of Toretsk in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine, reports that more than half of the city has been taken by Russian Armed Forces, with the Armed Forces of Ukraine fighting back at eight different locations. (Reuters)
- 10 October 2024 – Russian invasion of Ukraine
- The World Bank approves a new financial intermediary fund consisting of grants from the United States, Japan, Canada, and other countries coupled with interest from frozen Russian assets to give to Ukraine as part of a $50 billion loan. (Reuters)
- Ukraine's Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War confirms the death of journalist Victoria Roshchyna, who had been held prisoner by Russia since August 2023. (The Kyiv Independent)
- 7 October 2024 – Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Crimea attacks
- An oil terminal in Feodosia, the largest oil facility in Russian-occupied Crimea, catches fire following an overnight drone attack by Ukrainian forces. Russian state media reports that a state of emergency has been declared in Feodosia due to a "human-made disaster". (Ukrainska Pravda)
- Eastern Ukraine campaign
Selected anniversaries for October
- October 4, 2006 — Siberia Airlines Flight 1812 crashed over the Black Sea en route from Tel Aviv (Israel) to Novosibirsk (Russia).
- October 25, 1854 — Battle of Balaclava was fought during the Crimean War, fought between the allied forces of the United Kingdom, French Empire and the Ottoman Empire on one side and Russia on the other.
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- ^ a b Mathieu, Edouard; Ritchie, Hannah; Rodés-Guirao, Lucas; Appel, Cameron; Giattino, Charlie; Hasell, Joe; Macdonald, Bobbie; Dattani, Saloni; Beltekian, Diana; Ortiz-Ospina, Esteban; Roser, Max (2020–2024). "Coronavirus Pandemic (COVID-19)". Our World in Data. Retrieved 2024-10-13.