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
- 18 October 2024 – Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Foreign involvement in the Russian invasion of Ukraine, North Korea–Ukraine relations
- The South Korean National Intelligence Service says that North Korea has started sending troops to fight with Russia in Ukraine. South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol calls for a security meeting and says the international community must respond with "all available means". (BBC)
- 16 October 2024 – Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Foreign involvement in the Russian invasion of Ukraine, North Korea–Ukraine relations
- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says that North Korea has now become directly involved in the war in Ukraine, with a senior Ukrainian intelligence official saying that around 3,000 North Korean troops are currently in Russia and are training for deployment to Russian-occupied territories. (Politico)
- United States and the Russian invasion of Ukraine
- U.S. President Joe Biden announces a new $425 million military aid package for Ukraine, containing long-range weaponry. (The Kyiv Independent)
- 15 October 2024 – Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Eastern Ukraine campaign
- Governor of Kharkiv Oblast Oleh Syniehubov orders the mandatory evacuation of all civilians from Kupiansk and Borova in Kharkiv Oblast, Ukraine. (Reuters)
- 15 October 2024 – Iran–European Union relations
- The European Union sanctions fourteen Iranian individuals and firms, including Iran Air and several high-ranking members of the Quds Force, for allegedly transferring missiles and drones to Moscow in order to help Russia in its invasion of Ukraine. (Al Jazeera)
- 14 October 2024 – Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Southern Ukraine campaign
Featured pictures
Did you know (auto-generated)
- ... that Yulia Tolopa, a single mother from Russia, has fought for Ukraine in the war in Donbas since she was 18 years old?
- ... that when public radio stations aired Beethoven's Ninth Symphony in solidarity with Ukraine on 10 March 2022, the bass voice of Anthony Robin Schneider was heard live from Frankfurt and recorded from Auckland?
- ... that the choral music of Artemy Vedel, who is regarded as one of the Golden Three composers of 18th-century Ukrainian classical music, was censored but performed from handwritten copies?
- ... that Ukrainian activists squatted Viktor Yanukovych's opulent clubhouse at the Mezhyhirya Residence?
- ... that Sofia Halechko's first language was Polish, but she fought in World War One to create a country for Ukrainian-speaking people?
- ... that more than 200 Nobel Prize laureates have signed a letter against the war in Ukraine?
More did you know -
- ... that the longest of the Kiev bridges, the 1,543 metres long Paton Bridge over the Dnieper River, constructed in 1953 was the first fully welded steel construction of such length at that time?
- ... that the Kryvbas economic region in Ukraine is one of the largest iron ore and steel industry centers in Europe?
- ... that the Khreschatyk is the main street of Ukrainian capital Kyiv on which Orange Revolution and other historical events mainly took place?
- ... that the neo-classical Verkhovna Rada building in Kyiv features a hundred-tonne glass dome over the chamber where the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine convenes to enact legislation?
- ... that the married Western Ukrainian Clergy became a hereditary caste that dominated western Ukrainian society?
- ... 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 Orange Revolution (Ukrainian: Помаранчева революція, romanized: Pomarancheva revoliutsiia) was a series of protests that lead to political upheaval in Ukraine from late November 2004 to January 2005. It gained momentum primarily due to the initiative of the general population, sparked by the aftermath of the 2004 Ukrainian presidential election run-off which was claimed to be marred by massive corruption, voter intimidation and electoral fraud. Kyiv, the Ukrainian capital, was the focal point of the movement's campaign of civil resistance, with thousands of protesters demonstrating daily. Nationwide, this was highlighted by a series of acts of civil disobedience, sit-ins, and general strikes organized by the opposition movement.
The protests were prompted by reports from several domestic and foreign election monitors as well as the widespread public perception that the results of the run-off vote of 21 November 2004 between leading candidates Viktor Yushchenko and Viktor Yanukovych were rigged by the authorities in favour of the latter. The nationwide protests succeeded when the results of the original run-off were annulled, and a revote was ordered by Ukraine's Supreme Court for 26 December 2004. Under intense scrutiny by domestic and international observers, the second run-off was declared to be "free and fair". The final results showed a clear victory for Yushchenko, who received about 52% of the vote, compared to Yanukovych's 44%. Yushchenko was declared the official winner and with his inauguration on 23 January 2005 in Kyiv, the Orange Revolution ended. In the following years, the Orange Revolution had a negative connotation among pro-government circles in Belarus and Russia. (Full article...)
In the news
- 18 October 2024 – Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Foreign involvement in the Russian invasion of Ukraine, North Korea–Ukraine relations
- The South Korean National Intelligence Service says that North Korea has started sending troops to fight with Russia in Ukraine. South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol calls for a security meeting and says the international community must respond with "all available means". (BBC)
- 16 October 2024 – Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Foreign involvement in the Russian invasion of Ukraine, North Korea–Ukraine relations
- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says that North Korea has now become directly involved in the war in Ukraine, with a senior Ukrainian intelligence official saying that around 3,000 North Korean troops are currently in Russia and are training for deployment to Russian-occupied territories. (Politico)
- United States and the Russian invasion of Ukraine
- U.S. President Joe Biden announces a new $425 million military aid package for Ukraine, containing long-range weaponry. (The Kyiv Independent)
- 15 October 2024 – Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Eastern Ukraine campaign
- Governor of Kharkiv Oblast Oleh Syniehubov orders the mandatory evacuation of all civilians from Kupiansk and Borova in Kharkiv Oblast, Ukraine. (Reuters)
- 15 October 2024 – Iran–European Union relations
- The European Union sanctions fourteen Iranian individuals and firms, including Iran Air and several high-ranking members of the Quds Force, for allegedly transferring missiles and drones to Moscow in order to help Russia in its invasion of Ukraine. (Al Jazeera)
- 14 October 2024 – Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Southern 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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