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 Organisation, and the OSCE. It is in the process of joining the European Union and has applied to join NATO. (Full article...)
In the news
- 1 January 2025 – 2022–2023 Russia–European Union gas dispute
- Russia's gas firm Gazprom suspends exports of Russian natural gas through Ukrainian pipelines after Ukraine refused to renew a transit agreement. However, Hungary will continue receiving Russian natural gas via the TurkStream pipeline. (Reuters)
- 30 December 2024 – Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Prisoners of war in the Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Russia and Ukraine exchange hundreds of prisoners of war in a deal brokered by the United Arab Emirates. Ukraine says that many of those released by Russia are soldiers captured during the Siege of Mariupol in 2022. (BBC News)
- 30 December 2024 – Syria–Ukraine relations
- Syria says that it hopes to form a "strategic partnership" with Ukraine following a high-level meeting in Damascus, Syria, between Syria's de-facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa and Ukrainian foreign minister Andrii Sybiha, where the two countries re-established diplomatic relations. Ukraine also vowed to send additional food aid to Syria. (Reuters)
- 28 December 2024 – Lukoil oil transit dispute, Ukrainian energy crisis, Slovakia–Ukraine relations
- Slovakia threatens reciprocal measures against Ukraine's plans to suspend the transit of Russian oil to Slovakia on January 1, including suspending electricity supplies. In response, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accuses Slovakia of opening a "second energy front" against Kyiv under Moscow's orders. (Al Jazeera)
- 27 December 2024 – Russian invasion of Ukraine
- North Korean involvement in the Russian invasion of Ukraine, 2024 Kursk offensive
- South Korea confirms the first capture of a North Korean soldier fighting against Ukrainian forces in Kursk Oblast, Russia, with the soldier later dying from his injuries. (BBC News) (Reuters)
- 27 December 2024 – Syria–Ukraine relations, Grain From Ukraine program
- Ukraine announces that it has sent a shipment of 500 tonnes of wheat to Syria after Russia suspended shipments following the fall of the Assad regime. (The Kyiv Independent)
- 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)
Featured pictures
Did you know (auto-generated)
- ... that Anatolii Brezvin helped establish a youth hockey championship in Ukraine, and sought to open 60 ice rinks?
- ... that the Ukrainian Chorus Dumka of New York, founded in 1949 by immigrants, first toured Ukraine in 1990?
- ... that Ruslana Pysanka, who hosted a Ukrainian television program with Volodymyr Zelenskyy, died as a refugee in Germany?
- ... that Artem Datsyshyn, the National Opera of Ukraine's principal dancer in ballets such as Swan Lake and La Bayadère, is said to have danced with "romantic sublimity" and "psychological depth"?
- ... that Zinkiv, Ukraine, was a center of Hasidic Judaism until almost the entirety of the city's 2,300-strong Jewish population was murdered during the Holocaust?
- ... that the founder of the Guide to the Free World, helping people leave Russia after its invasion of Ukraine, said she was told: "It's good that you get out of Russia, but a pity that you won't be shot"?
More did you know -
- ... that the Khreschatyk is the main street of Ukrainian capital Kyiv on which Orange Revolution and other historical events mainly took place?
- ... that among many historic landmarks at the Andrew's Descent in Kyiv, there is a medieval Gothic style castle that locals call the "Castle of Richard the Lion Heart" due to the legend the 12th century King of England had visited the building?
- ... that according to legend, a tunnel leads from the Kamianets-Podilskyi Castle to the Khotyn Fortress which is 20 kilometres (12 mi) away?
- ... that the Privat Group is one of the few Ukrainian companies that own industries in the United States?
- ... 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 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 -
This is a list that encompasses and includes all leaders and rulers in the history of Ukraine. This page includes the titles of the Grand Prince of Kiev, Grand Prince of Chernigov, Grand Prince of Pereiaslavl, Grand Prince of Galicia–Volhynia, Hetman of Ukraine and President of Ukraine. The following list begins with the leaders who ruled over the territory of Ukraine during Antiquity and is followed by the princes who ruled the principalities that constituted Kievan Rus and continues with the presidents of Ukraine.
The territory has been known by a plethora of names, it has been known historically as: Kievan Rus, Rus', the Kingdom of Galicia-Volhynia, the Zaporozhian Host and the Hetmanate. The sovereigns of these fluctuating political entities have accordingly been described in a variety of ways: knyaz, knyahinya, korol, hetman and president. Two of the earliest noble titles: knyaz and velyky knyaz translate into English as "Prince" and "Grand Prince" respectively, whilst korol translates into 'king'. (Full article...)
In the news
- 1 January 2025 – 2022–2023 Russia–European Union gas dispute
- Russia's gas firm Gazprom suspends exports of Russian natural gas through Ukrainian pipelines after Ukraine refused to renew a transit agreement. However, Hungary will continue receiving Russian natural gas via the TurkStream pipeline. (Reuters)
- 30 December 2024 – Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Prisoners of war in the Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Russia and Ukraine exchange hundreds of prisoners of war in a deal brokered by the United Arab Emirates. Ukraine says that many of those released by Russia are soldiers captured during the Siege of Mariupol in 2022. (BBC News)
- 30 December 2024 – Syria–Ukraine relations
- Syria says that it hopes to form a "strategic partnership" with Ukraine following a high-level meeting in Damascus, Syria, between Syria's de-facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa and Ukrainian foreign minister Andrii Sybiha, where the two countries re-established diplomatic relations. Ukraine also vowed to send additional food aid to Syria. (Reuters)
- 28 December 2024 – Lukoil oil transit dispute, Ukrainian energy crisis, Slovakia–Ukraine relations
- Slovakia threatens reciprocal measures against Ukraine's plans to suspend the transit of Russian oil to Slovakia on January 1, including suspending electricity supplies. In response, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accuses Slovakia of opening a "second energy front" against Kyiv under Moscow's orders. (Al Jazeera)
- 27 December 2024 – Russian invasion of Ukraine
- North Korean involvement in the Russian invasion of Ukraine, 2024 Kursk offensive
- South Korea confirms the first capture of a North Korean soldier fighting against Ukrainian forces in Kursk Oblast, Russia, with the soldier later dying from his injuries. (BBC News) (Reuters)
- 27 December 2024 – Syria–Ukraine relations, Grain From Ukraine program
- Ukraine announces that it has sent a shipment of 500 tonnes of wheat to Syria after Russia suspended shipments following the fall of the Assad regime. (The Kyiv Independent)
- 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)
Selected anniversaries for January
- January 3, 1681 — Treaty of Bakhchisarai was signed by Russia, the Ottoman Empire, and the Crimean Khanate at the conclusion of the Russo-Turkish War (1676–1681).
- January 10, 1992 — the Ukrainian karbovanets replaced the Soviet ruble at par, with the ISO 4217 code being
UAK
. - January 15, 1967 — David Burliuk, an avant-garde artist, died in Long Island, New York.
- January 22, 1919 — The Act Zluky was signed, unifying the Ukrainian People's Republic and the West Ukrainian National Republic.
- January 23, 2005 — Ukrainian president Viktor Yushchenko was inaugurated into office after winning the second run-off elections in late 2004.
- January 29, 1918 — Battle of Kruty takes place between the Ukrainian People's Republic and Bolshevik forces.
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